The Nigerian First lady, Aisha Buhari has raised the alarm over increased child malnutrition in Nigeria to due to coronavirus pandemic and restriction of movement in a bid to combat the pandemic.
In a video shared on her twitter page on Friday, Mrs. Buhari said though malnutrition in children had been an issue before now the pandemic has led to significant increase in the number of acutely malnourished children in Nigeria.
She said, “Malnutrition has been a cause of death and underdevelopment among children under five in Nigeria even before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. With the emergence of the pandemic, however, and the subsequent restriction of movement, the situation has worsened resulting in the shortage of food supply.
“This in turn has led to a significant increase in the number of acutely malnourished children which requires urgent attention and collective action.”
Mrs. Buhari further requested humanitarian support, private sector intervention and donations by well meaning Nigerians to combat malnutrition among children between age zero to five.
“I strongly believe that making provisions for this group of children is a step towards upholding their rights to good nutrition and their right to life”, she said.
According to UNICEF, “An estimated 2 million children in Nigeria suffer from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), but only two out of every 10 children affected is currently reached with treatment. Seven percent of women of childbearing age also suffer from acute malnutrition.”