Nigeria has the highest burden of malnourished children in Africa, the United Nations Children’s Fund has said.
The international agency stated on its website that only two out of every 10 children affected currently have access to treatment.
It explained that with the world’s most populous black nation having the second-highest number of stunted children in the world, it is estimated that two million children in Nigeria are suffering from severe acute malnutrition.
According to the report, “Nigeria has the second-highest burden of stunted children in the world, with a national prevalence rate of 32 percent of children under five.”;
The international agency noted that seven percent of women of childbearing age also suffer from acute malnutrition, describing malnutrition as a direct or underlying cause of 45 percent of all deaths of under-five children.
It explained that exclusive breastfeeding rates had not improved significantly over the past decade, with only 17 percent of babies being exclusively breastfed during their first six months of life.
It stated that just 18 percent of children aged six to 23 months are fed the minimum acceptable diet, saying that high rates of malnutrition posed significant public health and development challenges for the country.
UNICEF added that stunting, in addition to an increased risk of death, is also linked to poor cognitive development, a lowered performance in education, and low productivity in adulthood, all contributing to economic losses estimated to account for as much as 11 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
“We aim to ensure that women, children, and adolescents, particularly in vulnerable and deprived areas, benefit from increased access to and use of quality services and information to prevent and treat malnutrition, including in emergencies,”; the report explained.
