By Danhassan Abubakar
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Bauchi Field Office has handed over life-saving nutrition commodities to the Bauchi State Government to strengthen efforts at preventing and treating child malnutrition across the state.
The supplies—Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) and Small Quantity Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements (SQLNS)—were procured through a matching grant arrangement under the Child Nutrition Fund partnership between UNICEF and the state government. The intervention is aimed at preventing malnutrition and treating children suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition.
Receiving the commodities at a warehouse on Saturday , Bauchi State Deputy Governor Mohammad Auwal Jatau reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to reducing maternal and child mortality. He disclosed that the government had paid ₦862 million into the Basket Fund through the Bauchi State Primary Healthcare Board to support programmes targeting pregnant women and children.
Jatau commended UNICEF for its continued support in improving the wellbeing of women and children in health, education, nutrition and WASH services. He directed the Ministry of Health to set up a high-level committee to ensure proper distribution of the commodities and report progress to the Commissioner for Health.
Presenting the items, UNICEF Chief of Field Office Dr Nuzhat Rafique explained that the commodities were procured through a joint funding arrangement. She said Local Government Areas contributed ₦100 million while the Bauchi State Government provided ₦200 million, which UNICEF matched with another ₦300 million to procure the supplies.
Dr Rafique urged stakeholders to ensure accurate nutrition information reaches grassroots communities to promote healthier mothers and children. She added that UNICEF would match an additional ₦500 million once the state government releases the promised counterpart funds for further procurement.
She also raised concern over the humanitarian situation affecting women and children in displacement camps in Kashere, noting that many vulnerable groups—including zero-dose children, malnourished children and anaemic lactating mothers—are currently in need of support.
The Commissioner for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Sani Muhammad Dambam, said the commodities would support the treatment of malnutrition among children aged six to 59 months. He disclosed that UNICEF handed over 4,562 cartons of RUTF and 15,419 cartons of SQLNS to the state and warned against diversion of the supplies meant for vulnerable children.
Dambam added that 601 healthcare workers had been trained to deliver nutrition services in selected health facilities across the state.
Earlier, the Executive Chairman of the Bauchi State Primary Healthcare Board, Dr Rilwanu Muhammad, called on UNICEF to expand Food and Nutrition Committees to 10 additional Local Government Areas to strengthen community awareness on proper nutrition.
Also speaking, Chairman of Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) in the state and Executive Chairman of Bauchi Local Government Area, Mahmoud Baba Ma’aji, assured that local governments would ensure strict monitoring and adequate security to prevent diversion of the nutrition commodities.
