The Federal Government of Nigeria has described the malnutrition crisis in Borno as far worse than what is being reported in the media.
The representative of the Minister of Health, Prof. Abdusallam Nasidi, who is also the National Coordinator of Centre for Disease Control at a joint press conference with Borno State Government, WHO and other donor partners, also disclosed that not less than 750,000 IDPs require urgent intervention in the next 90 days.
Prof. Abdulsalam Nasidi hinted that at least five children will die every hour in the state. He lamented that the problem of malnutrition was more than the 250,000 figure reported by the media.
He said, “The situation here is worsening than what has been reported, so we need to take urgent steps. We need to immediately reach out to 750,000 persons affected (children and adults as well as pregnant women) within the next three months with food, supplements and health interventions.”Without
He added that the situation will be worse with the continued military operations, as some people are still trapped in certain communities.
“It was agreed that the figures reported by the emergency team on group could be representing just a tip of iceberg. Thus, to prevent further disaster and mitigate the impact of dire situation, a long-term multi-sectoral collaboration, integrated approach and coordinated response is required,” Prof. Adulsalami noted.
In his remarks, the Borno State Commissioner of Health, Dr. Haruna Mshellia, disclosed that the situation will linger for months before the victims recover.