The Senior Special Adviser to the President of the African Development Bank Group on Industrialization, Prof. Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, emphasized Nigeria’s acute Food Shortage and its effect on maternal and child malnutrition. Speaking on the theme “From Scarcity to Security,” at the Agriculture Summit Africa Conference in Abuja, he noted that as of August 2024, 32 million Nigerians were experiencing severe food shortages as a result of economic changes and Security issues. Many of the people were spending as much as 60% of their salary on food, which is the highest percentage in the world.
Nigeria’s food shortage is highly severe, with serious repercussions for women and children. Hunger and Malnutrition have increased nationwide as a result of significant disruptions to food systems caused by conflict, climate change, and growing inflation. The restricted access to farmland, high food prices, and persistent Insecurity make it difficult for many women, especially those living in rural and conflict-affected areas, to provide for their families. Children under five are especially at risk as malnutrition weakens their immune systems, increasing their vulnerability to potentially fatal illnesses like pneumonia and diarrhea.
2.6m people are suffering from severe acute malnutrition.
About 26.5 million Nigerians are projected to experience severe hunger in the lean season of 2024, up from 25 million in 2023, according to the World Food Programme (WFP). Nine million of these children are at risk of malnutrition, with 2.6 million of them suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), which can be lethal if left untreated. Nigeria is one of the 20 nations where nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of the 181 million children who live in extreme child food Poverty reside. Last month, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reported that severe malnutrition rates have increased significantly in northeastern Nigerian healthcare institutions that the organization supports.
Medical facilities noted that the number of undernourished young children has increased by 24% from the previous year. The upward trend is concerning as it shows that families in the region are finding it harder and harder to put food on the table. When compared to the same period in 2023, the ICRC reported a 48% rise in severe acute malnutrition with medical consequences among children under five in health facilities it serves during the second quarter of this year. Humanitarian organizations estimate that 6.1 million people in the Lake Chad region may face food shortages in the upcoming months as a result of conflict and climate change, which is the biggest number in four years.
Rise in acute malnutrition occurred before the typical July peak.
According to a June report by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), admissions of extremely malnourished infants with life-threatening complications have increased dramatically at its facilities in northern Nigeria, with some areas seeing twice as many admissions as the previous year. This is concerning as the large number of patients and the resulting rise in acute malnutrition occurred before the typical July peak. The number of extremely malnourished children with problems admitted to the inpatient therapeutic feeding center by MSF’s medical team in Maiduguri, northeast Nigeria, in April 2024 was double that of April 2023.
For the past two years, the organization has issued warnings about the growing malnutrition catastrophe. The situation in 2024 is considerably more dire than it was in 2022 and 2023. MSF urges international organizations, donors, and Nigerian authorities to act quickly to identify and treat malnourished children in order to avoid related complications and fatalities. It identifies the necessity of a comprehensive response to the rising severe malnutrition crisis in the northern part of the country in recent years.
Related Article: Northern Nigeria faces Severe Malnutrition
Despite the dire circumstances, especially in the northern region where the crisis is more prevalent, the humanitarian response remains insufficient. This indicates the high need to mobilization funding and resources to address Food Security and Nutrition crisis envisaged in the north-eastern part of the country to complement the Federal Government’s efforts to prevent the deaths of people as a result of malnutrition-related complications, adoption of negative coping mechanisms and other health related issues among others. Immediate action is also essential to save millions of lives and lessen suffering among the countries vulnerable populations.