The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has donated 1.5 million doses of vitamin A to the Bauchi government to boost children’s immune system and healthy growth.

Nuzhat Rafique, UNICEF chief of the Bauchi field office, said this during the inauguration of the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW) on Monday in Bauchi.

Represented by Jackson Martins, nutrition officer at UNICEF, Ms Rafique said the UN agency also supported the state government with 47,000 bottles of multiple micronutrient supplements (MMS) to tackle maternal and child mortality.

Ms Rafique described vitamin A as a vital micronutrient for child growth and development.

She highlighted that deficiency at an early age could lead to preventable childhood blindness and significantly increase the risk of death associated with common illnesses like diarrhoea.

According to Ms Rafique, periodic high-dose vitamin A supplementation is a proven, low-cost intervention that reduces all-cause mortality by 12 to 24 per cent, making it a critical component to lower child mortality.

She said the MMS supplement was recommended for pregnant women because many have multiple micronutrient deficiencies that affect maternal health and foetal outcomes.

“We encourage caregivers, mothers and fathers to take advantage of this opportunity to protect children from preventable diseases and ensure they are well nourished for a healthy and productive life,” she said.

Rilwanu Mohammed, chairman of the Bauchi State Primary Healthcare Development Board (BSPHDB), said the exercise was aimed at accelerating actions to improve maternal, newborn, and child health indicators.

Mr Mohammed was represented by Sufiyan Jibrin, the agency’s director of primary healthcare.

He said the services were primarily delivered to strengthen routine PHC services for pregnant women, mothers, and children aged 0-59 months.

Mr Mohammed said children between the ages of 6 and 59 months would be administered vitamin A supplements and deworming tablets, and children between 12 and 59 months would be screened for acute malnutrition and appropriately referred when malnourished.

One of the beneficiaries, Aisha Usman, lauded the gesture, adding that it would improve their health status.

(NAN)