The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has sensitized women in Abuja on the importance of nutrition and access to a balanced diet.
The sensitization programme, held at Gidan Mangoro on Karshi Road in Abuja, was part of the 2023 nutrition week organized by the Nutrition Society of Nigeria with the theme: “Impact of Climate Change on Food and Nutrition Security”.
Ms Chito Nelson, head of Food and Nutrition at the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, told reporters that the event was to raise awareness about the importance of nutrition and advised women to ensure their households have access to a balanced lifestyle. diet.
He continued his speech by saying that the theme of sensitivity was appropriate as it reflected the current crisis faced globally.
Similarly, Ms. Yvonne Yinfaowei, representative of the Nutrition Department of the Ministry of Health, also emphasized the importance of breastfeeding in the first few months of a child’s life.
Yinfaowei said current economic challenges have brought to the fore the need to provide proper nutrition to children.
”We raise awareness among mothers about how they can understand that their children are disabled when they grow up. We will take him to treatment from there; If the child is malnourished, we will educate the mother on what kind of diet is needed for the baby. Due to COVID-19 and food shortages, the number of malnourished children has increased, which is devastating for us healthcare professionals.
“That’s why we’re working hard, raising awareness and educating mothers on what to do and how to detect when their child is starting to feed.” he said
Nigeria Nutrition International Senior Program Officer, Amina Atta, said Nigeria is still far from achieving the sustainable development goal of food security.
He also disclosed that the organization was working with six northwestern states – Kano, Sokoto, Kebbi, Katsina, Jigawa, Bauchi and Enugu – to improve maternal and child health.
According to him, Kano and Sokoto have the highest cases of diarrhea at 20% and 37% respectively, which he attributes to lack of access to quality food.
“Kano and Sokoto states are really committed to food diversity. In these states, when mothers fail to provide the right quality of food, children may develop diarrhea, a major contributing factor to malnutrition. “This can lead to severe acute malnutrition (SAM) and may require the child to be admitted to a SAM center for treatment, as the child may become malnourished within a week.”
Atta also advocated the use of zinc supplements to treat diarrhea in children under five and empower women to make decisions that will benefit their households.
Emphasizing the need for portable water to prevent diseases such as cholera, dysentery and diarrhea, Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation Representative Audu Paul said that access to drinking water in Nigeria is 69 percent.
”The government has been at the forefront of driving this process to ensure every citizen has access to safe drinking water. Therefore, many activities are carried out in the ministry and the government to improve the situation. “But there are still little difficulties here and there,” he continued.
The ministries of Water Resources, Women’s Affairs, Health and Social Welfare, Humanitarian Affairs, Agriculture, Science and Technology, and Budget and Economic Planning attended the event.
Meanwhile, the FCT Nutrition Coordinator, Mrs. Clementina Okoro, has called on the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the federal government to establish nutrition departments for the betterment of society.
Okoro said only three MDAs in the FCT had nutrition departments while Nasarawa had 10, thus urging other states to establish one.
”We have at least three doctors with a nutrition department. And we are also hopeful in the FCT and another state, actually some states as well. “I know some states, even our neighboring states here, Nasarawa states, already have nutrition departments in about 10 different sectors.” He added.
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