By Abubakar Yunusa
Martin Griffiths, United Nations (UN) under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, says $11 million has been allocated to support the fight against malnutrition in north-east Nigeria.
In a post on X on Thursday, Griffiths said: “Acute malnutrition is increasing rapidly in northeast #Nigeria and food insecurity has reached the highest level in 7 years.”
“To provide immediate support to the most vulnerable, I’ve allocated $11 million from @UNCERF. This is a start; more support is needed,” Griffiths wrote.
In 2023, the UN listed Nigeria among the 15 countries where children would suffer acute malnutrition and wasting.
In June last year, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said over 700,000 kids in the north-east would require treatment for acute wasting.
In December 2023, Vice-President Kashim Shettima inaugurated the nutrition core working committee to address malnutrition prevalence in Nigeria.
Shettima said the cases of severe malnutrition in Nigeria were at 33 percent, adding that the country loses $2.5 billion to nutrition deficiency annually.
He said only 88 out of 100 children under the age of five can survive the nutrition crisis in Nigeria.