Health
SOME mothers in Kaukau and Yandutse communities in Bichi Local Government Area (LGA) of Kano have hailed UNICEF for its intervention to reduce malnutrition among children.
The people spoke on the Dietrary Diversity Model Pilot Project of the world body in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Bichi on Thursday.
A beneficiary and Team Lead for the project, Mrs Amina Kau-kau, said that they were mobilised into a group of nursing mothers for the pilot project.
Kau-kau said that the beneficiaries were trained on supplementary and value added meals for their children after six to 23 months of birth.
“The intervention has improved the lives of infants through the nutritious diets.
“We each received three chickens, a goat and some seedlings to grow in our backyards.
“We also received training on processing into quality foods for our children,” Kau-kau said.
Another group leader in Yandutse Community, Mrs Fatima Sa’idu, also lauded the intervention.
According to her, the initiative helped beneficiaries to raise healthy babies.
Sa’idu said that the animals given to them had multiplied in the little time, adding that they utilised them to provide protein in the childrens’ meals.
Also, UNICEF Nutrition Consultant for Kano Field Office, Mrs Abigail Nyam, described the intervention as the first of its kind in the country.
Nyam said that the intervention was implemented in 44 communities in Bichi through a civil society organisation and the Society for Women Development and Empowerment, in collaboration with the State Government.
”The same project was piloted in 28 communities in Sumaila LGA with a long-term plan to spread it across the 44 areas in the state.
She said, ”15 women were selected in each community and provided with chickens, goats, fruits, vegetables and complementary feeding bowls for children between six and 23 months.”
She said that the women were attached to local government extension workers to educate them on how to raise the fruit and vegetable seeds given to them.
A family head, Mr Abdullahi Umar, said the project was beneficial to both women and children because the women also feed from the plantations and animals.
“In view of its importance, I gave a portion of my farm to the women group in my area to grow their trees and utilise them effectively with our guidance,” Umar said.
He called for the expansion of the project for the benefit of the entire communities in the area and state at large.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that UNICEF statistics put Kano’s nutrition status at 3.09 million children below five years in the state.
The UNICEF report says about 1.5 million of the number are stunted, with about 108,544 being wasted and about 2.03 million being anaemic.
Meanwhile, the UN Standing Committee on nutrition indicates that poor diets, resulting in malnutrition, are among the greatest societal challenges causing vast health, economic and environmental burden.
It states that the progress made so far is too slow to meet the global target of Global Nutrition target of 2025 and Sustainable Development Goal of 2030. (NAN)
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Tags: Abdullahi Umar Abigail Nyam Amina Kau-kau Fatima Sa’idu UNICEF
