By Ahmed Rufa’i, Dutse
The Nutrition Commodities and Logistics Management System desk officer in the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Mr. Samari Godwin Bawa has reported that Nigeria records no fewer than 2.5 million cases of severe malnutrition among children annually.
He made the disclosure while addressing questions during a two-day training for Nutrition Programme Officers on logistics for nutrition commodities, held at the Tahir Guest Palace in Dutse, Jigawa State.
Bawa explained that the federal government is concerned about the high number of severely malnourished children and is implementing programs to integrate nutrition initiatives into the Nigerian Health Logistics Management Information System (NHLMIS).
“Nigeria has the second highest rate of severe malnutrition in the world, following India, and the situation is worsening despite the efforts of the Nigerian government, partners, and donor agencies,” he stated.
He added that the nutrition program would be included in the NHLMIS alongside other health initiatives like malaria, HIV, TB, and maternal and child health.
The Federal Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the Jigawa State government and supported by Nutrition International, is working to address challenges related to stockouts of nutrition commodities in health facilities across the state.
“We are onboarding nutrition into the system to ensure visibility of commodities for federal, state, and local governments, similar to other public health programs,” Bawa noted.
The training aims to enhance the capacity of logistics managers handling nutrition commodities, helping them effectively use the NHLMIS platform for accountability.
Mrs. Ayodele Gbemileke, a senior program officer at Nutrition International, commended the efforts of the federal and state governments. She emphasized that this initiative will improve accountability and reduce stockouts of nutrition commodities.
Nutrition International has supported the training of about 40 nutrition logistics managers from Jigawa State on the NHLMIS platform. Gbemileke urged participants to apply their newly acquired skills and train other nutrition officers to help save millions of children from the risk of stunting.
Additionally,, a Jigawa State nutrition officer, Malam Muhammad Abdullahi stated that the state government, in partnership with UNICEF, has procured N500 million worth of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) for distribution to all malnutrition treatment centers across the state.