Over 2,000 under 5 children cured of severe acute malnutrition in Nasarawa – Agency

Over 2,000 under 5 children cured of severe acute malnutrition in Nasarawa – Agency

Dr Mohammad Adis, Executive Chairman of the agency, disclosed the figure to newsmen on Thursday in Lafia.

Adis said that the treatment of the malnourished children in the state, under the Community based Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) programme, was a collaborative effort of NSPHCDA and United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF).

He also said that CMAM programme, rolled out in Akwanga, Keffi and Lafia Local Government Areas of the state, February 2018, was geared toward managing children affected by acute malnutrition.

The executive chairman said the target of the programme was also to reach out to maximum number of children with cases of acute malnutrition for treatment.

He said so far, a total of 3,595 children had been enrolled and accessing treatment in the designated Out-patient Therapeutic Programme sites across the selected local government areas.

The executive chairman said that the children were undergoing treatment,using`Ready to Use Therapeutic Food’ (RUTF) supplements.

He noted that the programme had yielded tremendous results, adding that no record of death of the children being treated of acute malnutrition in the various facilities.

Adis also that the agency had had sufficient supply of RUFT supplements for the affected children undergoing treatment.

“The state government has completed the payment of the 2018 counterpart funds to UNICEF and 800 cartons of RUFT supplements were supplied in December 2018, to expire in March 2020. The agency also got delivery of the last batch of 1,300 cartons of RUTF supplements from UNICEF in July,” Adis said. (NAN)