By Our Reporter
UNICEF has said severe malnutrition threatens up to 300,000 children in Southern Africa countries.
In a press statement made available on Thursday morning, said this Crisis , exacerbated by El Nino-related conditions, has led Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi , Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe to declare states of national food disasters.
UNICEF Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa, Etleva Kadilli said the humanitarian needs children are facing due to El Nino are extremely concerning.
"Increased food insecurity and malnutrition, challenges in accessing safe water and sanitation as well as risks to disease outbreaks such as cholera, are a serious threat.
"Thousands of children are on the brink of being irresistibly impacted in their health and growth because of the climate change related Crisis and this warning should not go unheard by the international community," said Kadilli.
Kadilli said in the affected countries, 7.1 million children are experiencing child food poverty, with over 2 million subsisting on diets comprising at most two food groups. The drought has destroyed crops and livestock, leading to severe food scarcity.
According to the statement, in Malawi, 5.1 million people are expected to face acute food insecurity between October 2024 and March 2025, with Severe Acute Malnutrition admissions rising by 18 percent between January and May 2024.
UNICEF has since called for urgent funding to scale up lifesaving programs and strengthen national social protection systems.
Statistically, in the first quarter of 2023, UNICEF with support of donors and partners assisted Government of Malawi in screening 140,307 children underfive for acute malnutrition and among them, 522 were identified as having SAM and were referred for health care.
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