United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has expressed concern over the inadequate rates of breastfeeding and nutrition among newborns and young children in Nigeria.
According to Dr. Tushar Rane, Chief of Field Office, UNICEF Nigeria, Bauchi Field Office, only about 30.7 per cent of newborns are exclusively breastfed, and a mere 22.5 per cent of children aged 6 to 23 months receive a minimum acceptable diet.
Additionally, only 8.4 per cent receive minimum dietary diversity. Disturbingly, more than 50% of women and children are anemic, as indicated by statistics from the 2021 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS).
Dr. Rane emphasized these concerns during the Dissemination of Gombe State Nutrition Policy and Costed Multisectoral Food and Nutrition Strategic Plan of Action, which took place at the International Hotel in Gombe.
The data highlights a pressing need for concerted efforts to improve nutrition and breastfeeding practices, particularly among newborns and young children, to combat chronic food poverty and address the prevalence of anemia in Gombe State and beyond.
Tushar Rane said that “We envisage that the effective implementation of this policy can contribute to alleviating these nutrition gaps in the state. Hence, at UNICEF, we delightfully supported the development of this policy from scratch.”
He added that “UNICEF mobilized financial and technical support in terms of providing data on nutrition indices and support the costing of the policy. UNICEF facilitated the engagement of external experts and its own technical experts, whose synergy with the state’s technical team ensured the birthing of this policy and costed multisectoral plan of action.”
The UNICEF Chief of Field Office added that “We hope that it strengthens multisectoral nutrition governance and coordination at all levels while ensuring accountability.”
He further said that “Let me use this opportunity to inform this prestigious gathering that UNICEF has procured 3,645 Cartons of Small Quantity Lipid Based Supplement worth the sum of N337,193,748.60 to enhance the diet of children 6 to 23 months. This support has been made possible with thanks to the generous contribution of Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).”
Tushar Rane stressed that “Nutrition is a multi-sectoral and multidisciplinary issue involving various sectors including health, agriculture, science and technology, education, Social Protection, Water and Sanitation thereby improving Economic Growth.”
According to him, “The Food and Nutrition Policy we are launching today will guide Gombe State to address the hinderances to food and nutrition security from individual, household, community, local government to state levels.”
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He added that, “It steers the identification, design, and implementation of intervention activities across relevant sectors. The Costed Multisectoral Strategic Plan will promote diets, services and practices that support optimal nutrition, growth and development for all children, adolescents, and women.”
Tushar Rane stressed that,”The strategic plan estimates that the interventions across the state would require a public investment of ₦11,169,423,741.16 with an average annual public investment cost estimated of ₦2,035,892,400.00 over the next four years (2023-2027).”
“Furthermore, it is noteworthy and commendable that Gombe state contributed N50 million as counterpart contribution for the Child Nutrition Fund to address all forms of Malnutrition particularly Wasting, Anaemia and Stunting,” he added.
According to him, “The Child Nutrition Fund (CNF) is a new financing mechanism designed to accelerate the scale-up of sustainable policies, programmes and supplies to end child wasting. The minimum contribution for the CNF is N100 million.”
He further stressed that, “About half of child mortality is attributable to malnutrition. Thus, good nutrition plays a leading role in averting deaths of children. Ensuring proper nutrition of children requires a life-cycle approach whereby adequate Nutrition commences from conception to newborn until the baby grows into an adolescent and then an adult.”
He also stressed that,”The first 1000 days of life – between a woman’s pregnancy and her child’s second birthday – is a unique period of opportunity when the foundations for optimum health and development across the lifespan are established.”
According to him, “The right nutrition and care during the 1000-day window influences not only whether the child will survive, but also his or her ability to grow, learn and rise out of poverty. As such, it contributes to society’s long-term health, stability, and prosperity.”
Tushar Rane assured that Investing in the early years is one of the smartest investments a state can make to break the cycle of poverty, address inequality, and boost productivity later in life.
He said that,”Today, millions of young children are not reaching their full potential because of inadequate nutrition. It is our hope that the new policy will provide an overarching framework, covering the multiple dimensions of food and nutrition improvement, with the special focus on nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions.”
He then congratulated the Gombe State Government for charting a pathway to address nutrition problems by domesticating and formally launching the Gombe State Nutrition Policy and Development of Costed Multisectoral Strategic Plan of Action for the state’s treasure – its children.
NIGERIAN TRIBUNE