2 .6million Children Suffer Severe Acute Malnutrition In Nigeria - ISMPH

The International Society of Media in Public Health (ISMPH) in collaboration with other relevant civil society organisations said an estimated 2.6 million Nigerian children within the age of 5 suffer from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM).

ISMPH who said humanity should be a priority to all, added that, health is recognised as a fundamental human rights because of its nexus with life. 

While saying that UNICEF estimated that 1,150 children die in Nigeria everyday because of SAM, it further added that about 420, 000 children under the age of 5 die every year in Nigeria.

Speaking in an interactive session with media practitioners in Sokoto, a senior programme manager with ISMPH, Mr Samuel Dogo, said there are other extremely dangerous conditions that make children nine times more likely to die from common childhood illness such as diarrhoea, pneumonia and malaria.

He stressed that malnutrition has lasting effects on individuals , families and nations, adding that nearly half of all children ’s deaths are related to poor nutrition.

He also added that, 10 per cent or more of a person’s lifetime earnings can be lost due to lower productivity, reduced cognitive ability and increased health care cost. 

Dogo also added that 3 to 16 per cent of the GDP in African economies is lost due to under nutrition.

Dogo also said that Nigeria has low commitment in Hunger and Nutrition Commitment Index.

 ISMPH programme manager said that there is evidence of insufficient coverage of CMAM in Sokoto as only 9 out of the 23 local governments has its presence.

Dogo also said that statistics has shown that Sokoto State malnutrition rate is almost twice the national average hence about 900 per 1000 children suffer acute malnutrition.

“The prevalence of Severe and Moderate Acute Malnutrition cases in Sokoto State is 1.7 per cent.