A non-governmental organisation under the aegis of CS-SUN, advocating for healthy living for children, pregnant women and lactating mothers, has named malnutrition as a leading cause of child mortality in Benue State.
The deputy coordinator of CS-SUNN, who made this disclosure during a visit to the Ministries of Humanitarian and Disaster Management and that of Agriculture and Food Security to seek partnership in the fight against malnutrition, informed that statistics available indicated that 54 percent of all child mortality in the state is as a result of malnutrition which she said is a call for concern.
She also lamented that 43 percent of children in the state are stunted because they were not exclusively breastfed, while 13% of the children are underweight.
Represented by Dr. Gift Izenyi, the deputy coordinator, she informed that a study done in 2021 actually shows that the highest burden of malnutrition of children in the country is in Benue and Cross River states.
The organisation also advocated for creating a nutrition department in all the ministries visited and for six months of maternity leave for breastfeeding mothers as opposed to three months, adding that this would help them exclusively breastfeed their babies and regain their health before resuming work.
In a welcome remark, the state commissioner for humanitarian and disaster management, Aondowase Kunde, said his office is working hard to address the prevalent malnutrition issues in Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Camps across the state.
The commissioner also pledged to support CS-SUNN in achieving its objectives and lamented that the IDPs depend solely on support from the government, adding that the ministry was doing a lot to improve their condition, especially in the area of malnutrition.
Kunde also disclosed that the ministry already has a desk officer on nutrition.
Similarly, during a visit to the ministry, the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Iveren Terfa, expressed the need to step up nutrition activities in the state, particularly regarding children.
She said that breastfeeding actually boosts children’s immunity, stressing that women carry a lot of burden and the challenges they faced were enormous.
Terfa promised to relay the message of the advocacy visit to the commissioner and ministry’s management team.
