Nigeria has been identified as the country with the second-highest number of malnourished children worldwide, following only India, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has revealed.
Chief of Nutrition for UNICEF Nigeria, Nemat Hajeebhoy, disclosed the data during a recent collaborative meeting between the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency, and state nutrition managers.
She noted that approximately 35 to 45 million children under five years old in the country are affected by malnutrition in various forms, including stunting, wasting, and anemia.
These conditions, she said, have severe adverse effects on their physical and cognitive development. UNICEF however, reported a significant achievement during the recent maternal, newborn, and child health week campaigns where over 43 million Nigerian children received Vitamin A supplements.
“We ensured that about 19 million children were reached with deworming tablets Additionally, over two million pregnant women received supplements of either iron and folic acid or a multiple micronutrient tablet, and this is very important to enable them to be healthy and for the growth of their children,” she added.
She expressed optimism that the next round of the Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health (MNC) Week, scheduled between mid-November and mid-December, would receive support from states, families, and communities.
This, she said, would help them deliver impactful results not only for Nigeria but for the West African region, the continent, and the global health community.
