Child Malnutrition Rates Soar In Nigeria As Nutrition Funding Dries

In Nigeria, a silent crisis is unfolding: widespread malnutrition is threatening the lives and futures of millions of children. Fueled by poverty, soaring food prices, and exacerbated by climate change and conflict, this issue demands urgent national attention and coordinated action. ROLAND OGBONNAYA, SEGUN OLANIYAN, MICHAEL DAVID and TOYIN ADEBAYO examine the stark realities of Nigeria’s malnutrition crisis, its root causes, and potential solutions, highlighting the need for a holistic and sustained approach to save lives and secure the nation’s future

IN the heart of a bustling health cen­tre on the outskirts of Abuja, the si­lent suffering of Nigeria’s children unfolds daily. A mother’s weary arms cradle her child, a fragile being whose skeletal frame paints a stark pic­ture: a nation struggling to nourish its future. For the nurses who witness this scene repeatedly, it’s not just a statistic, but a heartbreaking reality reflecting a deepening crisis.

Across Nigeria, millions of children under five are battling the devastating effects of hunger and poverty, with mal­nutrition threatening not only to steal but also to undermine the nation’s very foundation.

The numbers tell a grim story. Ac­cording to the World Health Organisa­tion (WHO), 37% of Nigerian children are stunted, their growth permanently hindered by chronic malnutrition. This means they are shorter than they should be for their age – a visible marker of a future compromised. Another 22% are underweight, while 7% suffer from wasting, a life-threatening condition where the body consumes itself in a desperate fight for survival, shrinking and weakening under the relentless as­sault of inadequate food and recurring illness. Alarmingly, nearly two million children endure severe acute malnutri­tion, a condition requiring immediate and specialised care. Yet, only a fraction of those in need receive the desperately needed treatment.

Despite decades of interventions, progress has been painstakingly slow, leaving many to wonder if Nigeria can truly overcome this monumental challenge. Experts warn that unless Ni­geria mounts a coordinated, national response that addresses the root causes of malnutrition, the crisis will continue to rob children of their potential, perpet­uate cycles of poverty, and ultimately hold back the nation’s development.

Nigeria’s malnutrition crisis is inex­tricably linked to its deepening poverty. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) paints a disturbing picture: 133 million Nigerians live in multidimensional pov­erty, lacking access to essential elements like healthcare, education, clean water, sanitation, and, most importantly, nu­tritious food.

Dr. Ngozi Eze, a public health nutri­tionist, emphasises the dire importance: “Poverty directly fuels malnutrition. Families who cannot afford quality meals feed their children starch-heavy diets with little protein or vitamins. Over time, this leads to stunting, wast­ing, and poor brain development. Mal­nutrition then weakens productivity, trapping households in poverty.” This creates a vicious cycle where poverty breeds malnutrition, which in turn re­inforces poverty, trapping families and communities in perpetual hardship.

The situation is further aggravated by soaring food inflation. By mid-2025, food prices had surged over 40%, push­ing even basic protein-rich foods beyond the reach of many families. Foods like beans, eggs, and milk, once considered modest staples, have become luxuries. In rural areas, desperation drives some mothers to dilute baby formula in an attempt to stretch it further, unknow­ingly depriving their infants of vital nutrients and making them even more vulnerable.

The crisis is most acutely felt in northern Nigeria, where rates of stunting are particularly alarming, ex­ceeding 50% in some states. A toxic mix of poverty, conflict, displacement, and limited access to healthcare services has created a perfect storm, leaving children in these regions especially vulnerable.

Ambassador Fatima Abdullahi, who leads a maternal and child health NGO in Kaduna, underscores the unique challenges facing the North: “The North faces unique challenges. Conflict has forced families from their farms, girls marry too young, and mothers with lit­tle education struggle with proper feed­ing practices. These factors converge to fuel alarming malnutrition rates.” The interconnectedness of these challenges highlights the need for comprehensive solutions that address the underlying social and economic factors.

In internally displaced person (IDP) camps across Borno, Zamfara, and Kat­sina, children are heavily reliant on food aid, which is often insufficient in both quantity and quality. Simultaneously, rural clinics in Sokoto and Yobe often lack essential therapeutic food supple­ments, leaving children suffering from severe acute malnutrition without the treatment they desperately need.

The Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) illuminates the intricate ways in which poor living conditions exacerbate the crisis. Dr. Peter Ojo, an economist with the Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research, ex­plains: “Malnutrition is linked to edu­cation, health, and sanitation. A child may eat daily, but if they drink unsafe water, fall ill constantly, or lack medical care, they will still suffer from malnutri­tion. Tackling it requires a multisectoral approach.” The interconnected nature of these factors necessitates a holistic approach that goes beyond simply pro­viding food.

Poor sanitation contributes to the spread of diarrheal diseases, which prevent the absorption of vital nutri­ents. The lack of electricity limits food storage and preservation, leading to spoilage and further limiting access to nutritious options. These often-over­looked factors deepen the crisis and demand comprehensive solutions that address the broader living conditions of vulnerable populations.

While the situation is dire, experts remain optimistic, emphasising that it is possible. Professor Hadiza Garba, a paediatrician and advocate, points to Ethiopia and Bangladesh as success stories that Nigeria can emulate.

“They once had similar challenges but made huge strides through agricul­tural reforms, targeted programs, and public awareness. Nigeria can achieve the same if nutrition is treated as a national development issue, not just a health problem,” she argues. These countries demonstrated that with fo­cused efforts and political will, signif­icant improvements in nutrition are attainable.

Potential solutions include promot­ing exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, expanding school feeding schemes to ensure children receive at least one nutritious meal a day, investing in the production and distribution of nutrient-rich crops, and establishing robust social safety nets to support vulnerable families. Crucially, empowering wom­en economically has consis­tently proven to significantly improve children’s nutrition outcomes, as women tend to prioritise their well-being.

A range of actors are involved in addressing the crisis which includes the fed­eral ministry of health and social welfare, in collabora­tion with various partners in implementing the Nation­al Food and Nutrition Poli­cy. Some states, like Kaduna and Lagos, have started ded­icating budget lines specifi­cally to nutrition, although the funding remains largely insufficient. International organisations like UNICEF, WHO, and the World Food Programme (WFP) are providing ther­apeutic feeding for severely malnour­ished children and promoting proper infant feeding practices through edu­cation and community outreach, while grassroots organisations like Scaling Up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN) are advocating for increased funding, great­er accountability, and community-driv­en solutions tailored to local contexts. Agribusinesses and social enterpris­es are introducing fortified foods and affordable nutrition products, such as nutrient-rich biscuits and porridges, aiming to make nutritious options more accessible to low-income families.

However, many interventions re­main fragmented, driven primarily by donor funding, and poorly coordinated. Corruption, weak health systems, and a lack of political prioritisation under­mine progress, preventing effective implementation and hindering the achievement of meaningful results.

The statistics, while alarming, fail to fully capture the human cost of malnu­trition. In Zamfara, three-year-old Sadi­ya weighs a mere eight kilogrammes – half the expected weight for a child of her age. Her mother, Aisha, whispers a heartbreaking truth: “We eat once a day. Sometimes only maize. I wanted to take her to the clinic, but we had no money for transport.” This story, repeat­ed countless times across the country, highlights the desperate circumstances faced by families struggling to survive.

For civil society leader James Oke, these individual stories underscore the urgency of national action: “Every mal­nourished child is a national emergen­cy. Malnutrition reduces intelligence, productivity, and increases healthcare costs. This is not just a family’s burden – it is Nigeria’s burden.” The long-term consequences of malnutrition extend far beyond individual suffering, impact­ing the nation’s overall development and economic prospects.

Adding to Nigeria’s challenges is the growing threat of climate change, which experts warn is significantly worsening food insecurity. Projections estimate that more than 33 million Ni­gerians will face acute food insecurity in 2025, pushing even more families into the throes of malnutrition.

Dr. Michael Ojo, Country Director of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), emphasises the link between climate change and nu­trition: “Climate change is not just an environmental issue; it is a nutrition issue. Floods, droughts, and extreme weather are disrupting agriculture and food supply, pushing nutritious meals further out of reach.” The unpredict­able nature of climate change makes it increasingly difficult for farmers to pro­duce enough food, further exacerbating the existing challenges of poverty and food insecurity.

Ojo stresses the urgent need for pol­icies that integrate climate resilience with nutrition, pointing to GAIN’s Climate Action and Nutrition (I-CAN) initiative launched at COP27 as a step in the right direction.

Dr. Sanjo Faniran of the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Plan­ning confirms that the government is finalising a climate-resilient National Food and Nutrition Policy, signaling a commitment to addressing the inter­connected challenges of climate change and malnutrition. “We are working to­ward a framework from farm to dining table that ensures food security despite climate challenges,” he stresses.

Experts also call for stronger collabo­ration between government ministries, the private sector, and civil society or­ganisations to break down silos and build resilient, nutrition-sensitive food systems that can withstand the impacts of climate change.

The path ahead is clear. Nigeria fac­es a critical choice: continue with frag­mented, underfunded efforts that yield limited results, or mount a bold, coordi­nated response that treats malnutrition as the urgent national crisis it truly is.

As Dr. Eze aptly puts it: “Every mal­nourished child is a silent emergency. By acting now through investments, education, and empowerment Nigeria can break the cycle of poverty and hun­ger, and give its children the chance to thrive.”

The stakes could not be higher. The future of Nigeria hinges on its ability to address the malnutrition crisis, ensur­ing that every child has the opportunity to reach their full potential and contrib­ute to a brighter tomorrow.

Mrs. Salome Vincent Aya, a nutri­tionist and director of nutrition with the Nasarawa State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NAPHCDA), em­phasises the connection between pover­ty and inadequate diets as key drivers of malnutrition in the North.

“Eating one class of food without adding any other causes malnutrition. If you want to maintain a good diet you should eat five classes of food, but some people will only eat carbohydrates throughout the day, so you can see it’s not balanced, it can cause malnutrition.” She also noted the role of food insecu­rity and lifestyle factors: “We can also have food insecurity when people have limited access to food and cannot eat as required, it can also cause malnutrition. We also have lifestyle factors when some people will only eat once a day; these are also causes of malnutrition.”

Mrs. Aya advises families to provide their children with extra meals each day to prevent malnutrition and calls on the government to address security challenges that prevent access to farms. “A situation where people can no longer go to their farm again, and even if they go, the little they get they will sell it to address other problems than keeping it to address hunger in their houses; it also causes malnutrition in the region.”

Following a concerning report from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) revealing that 652 children died from malnutrition in Katsina State within the first six months of 2025, the state government has declared the situation a public health emergency and renewed its commitment to a multi-sector campaign.

Dr. Shamsuddeen Yahya, Executive Secretary of the Katsina State Primary Health Care Agency, describes malnutrition as “one of the leading causes of illness and death in the state” and urges the public to treat the MSF report as “a wake-up call rather than criticism.”

He highlights the government’s commitment to working with various stakeholders, including MSF, traditional and religious leaders, and civil society groups, to address the issue. Dr. Yahya also expresses concern over the misuse of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) and warns of the establishment of mobile courts to prosecute offenders.

“The issue of malnutrition goes beyond taking food, but a lot of underlined causes and social issues complicate the management of malnutrition,” Dr. Yahya emphasises, acknowledging the complexity of the issue.

The government’s plan involves a multi-pronged intervention addressing healthcare and cultural factors, developed through a task force involving UNICEF, MSF, ALIMA, and the World Food Programme.

Dr. Yahya points to existing efforts, including providing financial support to UNICEF and allocating funds to local government areas for child nutrition centers. The state operates numerous outpatient and inpatient facilities for severely malnourished children.

He added that steps are also being taken to distribute farming tools, establish mechanisation centres, and monitor markets to prevent food hoarding.

Simultaneously, a National Assembly Committee on Basic Healthcare Services visited Katsina State to assess healthcare implementation. Chairman Amos Gwamna Magaji expressed concern over high maternal mortality rates and low immunisation rates in some areas.

Katsina State Commissioner for Health, Musa Adamu Funtua, identified challenges such as porous borders, insecurity, and increased medicine costs affecting healthcare delivery. He acknowledged the government’s efforts to support farmers and implement empowerment programs but highlighted security challenges in border areas as hindering healthcare services.

The situation in Nigeria demands a multifaceted and urgent response. It requires not only direct interventions to treat malnutrition but also sustained efforts to alleviate poverty, improve sanitation, address climate change, and strengthen healthcare systems. Only through a holistic and coordinated approach can Nigeria truly break the cycle of poverty and hunger and secure a healthy and prosperous future for its children.

(Daily Independent)