UNICEF laments over Enugu children having stunted growth

The Planning and Monitoring Specialist United Nations Children’s Fund -UNICEF, Enugu Field Office, Mrs. Maureen Zubie-Okolo, said about 152, 243 most children under age five in Enugu State have stunted growth.

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She disclosed this in Enugu during a policy dialogue with the Enugu State Executive and Legislative Councils on Investment in Nutrition.

Zubie-Okolo attributed the poor state of nutrition to poor maternal, infant, and young child feeding practices during the first 1000 days.

“In Enugu State, only 7.8 per cent of children under five years receive the minimum acceptable diet while less than one-fifth of children between zero to five months are exclusively breastfed. This is a call for both the executive and legislative arms of the state government to come together to ensure that nutrition is placed on the agenda,” she said.

Zubie-Okolo said that malnutrition had become a silent emergency, and lamented that despite the unfortunate development, it was receiving little or no attention.

She further said the meeting was in line with the Sustainable Development Goals agenda of ending all forms of malnutrition by 2030, added that the goal also included achieving the internationally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under five years by 2025.

Oluchi Okwuego/PHW