- Says Benue Number One In Child Poverty, Cross River Number Two
By Amos Aar
CIVIL Society-Scaling Up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN) has lamented that 54 per cent of child mortality in Benue were as a result of malnutrition.
The Deputy Coordinator, CS-SUNN, Dr Priscilla Utoo, disclosed this during an advocacy visit to the Director-General (DG), Bureau for International Cooperation and Development, Mr Leo Viashima, as well as the Executive Secretary, Primary Healthcare Board, Mrs Ashi Wende, on Monday in Makurdi.
Utoo further lamented that 21 per cent of children in the state were stunted, stressing that 13.6 of them were underweight while 43 per cent were not exclusively breast fed within six months of their lives on earth.
She noted that nutrition was the bedrock of health and development, adding that better nutrition contributes to improved health both in children and adults as well as lower risk of non communicable diseases.
She said comparative review of nutrition situation in Nigeria showed that Benue, despite being the ‘Food Basket of the Nation,’ was number one in child poverty followed by Cross River.
According to her, it has the potential of increasing the prevalence of malnutrition in the state with its adverse short- and long-term consequences if not tackled head on.
Responding, Viashima commended CS-SUNN for the efforts it was making to increase awareness on the dangers of malnutrition in the state.
He promised to work closely with the organisation to ensure that the situation improved for the better.
He urged CS-SUNN to organise stakeholders’ summit to increase awareness on the dangers of malnutrition and draw government’s attention on the need to implement improved nutrition in the state.
Wende, on her part, expressed the desire of the board to partner with stakeholders to achieve healthy nutrition, particularly among children, pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers in the state.
She said that the board in Benue had 276 offices across the state, emphasising that it was ready to work with all the stakeholders in achieving the desired results for a better nutrition particularly among children in the state.
Also speaking, the State Coordinator of CS-SUNN, Mrs Rachel Ityonzughul, stated that the organization was pushing to ensure that nutrition was included in the budget for the overall good of the children.
