The UNICEF
Global Nutrition Report of 2016 has revealed that 2.1million children in
Nigeria are currently diagnosed as suffering from malnutrition, while 361,000
children die annually from malnutrition in the country.
The figures, according to the report, placed the country
second in global ranking of prevalence of stunting and wasting, after India.
Jigawa State has the highest prevalence rate followed by
Katsina State.
The Executive Director of Civil Society Legislative
Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Malam Auwal Ibrahim Musa Rafsanjani, presented the
report at the weekend during a meeting with Governor Aminu Bello Masari at the
Katsina State Government House.
Quoting from the report, Rafsanjani noted that Katsina was
among the states in Nigeria with less than 10 per cent exclusive breastfeeding
practice while 11 other states including Abuja have a total record of 1,700,
000 malnourished children.
The states are Bauchi, Gombe, Jigawa, Kano, Kebbi, Sokoto,
Zamfara, Adamawa, Yobe and Borno.
Rasfanjani described CISLAC as a UNICEF-sponsored project
working towards reducing malnutrition among children and their mothers.
According to him, "Globally, 25,000 children under the age
of five years die daily and 45 per cent of cause of death is attributed to
malnutrition. Nigeria is one of the 20 countries responsible for 80 per
cent of global child malnutrition which accounts for one tenth of the global
total."
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