The Civil Society Scaling up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN), Bauchi chapter, says 1,825 malnourished children recovered from severe acute malnutrition between May and November 2023.

The secretary of the society, Dabis Mwalike, announced this at a news conference on Thursday in Bauchi as part of activities to mark the 10th anniversary of CS-SUNN.

She said CS-SUNN was supported in initiating a programme that focuses on the nutrition system and looks at several sectors, factors, and disciplines interplaying or having one thing or the other, contributing to the nutrition system in Bauchi.

She said, “CS-SUNN, through its partnership with other implementing partners, assisted in the recovery of 1,825 children under five years, who were identified with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) and Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM) in six months.

“During the implementation, 698 healthcare providers were trained across the 20 local government areas of Bauchi, and 202 Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) established food banks.”

Ms Mwalike, however, added that in spite of the efforts, malnutrition remains a concern to public health and a threat to child survival, growth and development in the country and Bauchi.

She identified inadequate funding, lack of scalability of interventions, and lack of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) in Bauchi and referral complications as major challenges.

She added that despite efforts to empower women, gender disparities in access to resources, decision-making power, and participation in economic activities still exist, limiting the effectiveness of interventions.

According to her, CS-SUNN is seeking more support from local government councils to sensitise and change negative perceptions and beliefs around Maternal, Infant and Young Child Nutrition (MIYCN) by beneficiaries, health workers and caregivers.

“We also want to ensure the availability of commodities and consumables in health facilities. CS-SUNN has lots of initiatives and innovations but no funds. We will continue to educate, sensitise and counsel women on the importance of nutrition to both adults and children to change negative norms,” she stated.

(NAN)