Urgent Action Needed as Over 1.5 Million Severe Malnutrition Cases Spark Concern in Kano

By Salifu Faridat

Kano’s public health sector is grappling with an alarming surge in severe malnutrition cases, surpassing 1.5 million, triggering urgent calls for action to elevate breastfeeding practices in the region.

A coalition of health experts and organizations has united to confront Kano’s pressing malnutrition challenge head-on.

Their primary appeal is directed toward the Kano State Government, urging the enactment of legislation to extend maternity leave from the current three months to a comprehensive six-month period.

This proposal specifically aims to accommodate working mothers, providing them the essential time needed to nurture their infants.

The gravity of the situation gained prominence during the observance of the 2023 World Breastfeeding Week, spanning from August 1st to 7th.

During this occasion, stakeholders underscored the profound significance of exclusive breastfeeding during the early stages of a child’s life.

They emphasized that withholding exclusive breastfeeding denies children the crucial foundation for their psychological, mental, and cognitive development.

Dr. Ashiru Mohammad, the Team Lead of the Alive and Thrive Foundation, underscored the pivotal importance of a child’s first 1,000 days.

He illuminated the integral role that exclusive breastfeeding during infancy plays in molding a child’s psychological and mental faculties for years to come.

The coordinator of the Bill and Melinda Gates funded foundation advocated for substantial investments and proactive advocacy in the realm of nutrition. These endeavors are strategically designed to empower women and mothers to provide their offspring with a wholesome start in life.

The foundation’s ongoing initiative seeks to enhance maternal, infant, and young child nutrition across seven Northern states, with the overarching goal of alleviating the burden of malnutrition.

Rahama Farah, the UNICEF Chief of Kano Field Office, expressed disquiet over the absence of workplace breastfeeding policies in Nigeria’s formal sector.

He disclosed that a mere 9 percent of organizations have established such policies, shedding light on the pressing need for change.

Farah, represented by Nutrition Manager Elhadji Diop, advocated for an environment that supports working parents in effectively juggling child-rearing duties and professional pursuits.

Diop spotlighted the current divide: approximately one million women are employed in the formal sector, while a staggering 95 percent work within the informal sector. Shockingly, only 9 percent of organizations possess a workplace breastfeeding policy, and a meager 1.5 percent pertain to the public sector.

Diop passionately emphasized the urgency to reshape this landscape, granting working parents the capacity to harmonize childcare responsibilities with their career ambitions.

“To drive this transformation and promote breastfeeding support in workplaces, UNICEF urges the Kano State Government to extend paid maternity leave for government employees from the present three months to six months, underscoring the significance of breastfeeding,” Diop asserted.

Murtala Inuwa, Head of Nutrition at Kano State Primary Healthcare, sounded the alarm over the dire consequences of malnutrition.

He illuminated that 1.5 million children in Kano are suffering from stunted growth attributed to severe malnutrition, with an additional 108,000 children facing acute malnutrition.

Inuwa reiterated that without robust feeding practices, complemented by exclusive breastfeeding, the situation is poised to deteriorate.

Collective efforts from stakeholders, organizations, and advocates are laser-focused on combatting Kano’s urgent malnutrition crisis and securing a healthier future for its children.