The Executive Secretary, Civil Society Extension Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN), Mrs Sunday Okoronkwo, has called on state lawmakers to pass a law allowing six months maternity leave to enable women to practice exclusive breastfeeding.
He made the call during a two-day legislative conference that brought together lawmakers from the 13 states of the federation to strategize and suggest solutions to the challenge of malnutrition in their states.
The 2024 Legislative Retreat on Key Nutrition Issues
CS-lSUNN will take place from June 25th to 26th at the Dover Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos.
According to the CS-SUNN executive director, another objective of the retreat is to ensure legislators’ commitment to improving the nutrition situation in their states.
Okoronkwo noted that the issue of nutrition of children and all members of society was important, hence the need for immediate action to ensure nutrition for all.
He said the proposed six-month maternity leave, if implemented as a policy in states, would enable women to exclusively breastfeed their babies. We believe this is the best antidote to nutritional practices that can actually prevent child malnutrition.
“So it’s really important that both sides pass the law as policy at the executive level.
“And secondly, comparing the burden of malnutrition in these states will help address the signs of malnutrition such as stunting, wasting and undernutrition which are high in these states.
He noted that one of the causes of malnutrition is lack of funding, “so one of the objectives of this meeting is to present the facts and figures to the legislators to show what the problem is, the gap that exists between existing funding for nutrition and the need for increased funding.”
“Rather than just allocating it, we should also work on ensuring that funds are released quickly and utilised effectively.”
“For us, that’s the second core objective. And thirdly, we have a child nutrition fund managed by UNICEF in the country. This is a four-year pooled fund raised by international aid groups, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
“The idea is to provide nutrition supplies, make them accessible, and each state will contribute a portion, and each state will compensate.”
“For example, if the state contributes $100,000, which is the minimum amount, these donors will match that with $100,000, making $200,000 worth of nutrition supplies available.”
Meanwhile, Prof. Kola Mateu Anigo of the University of Abuja, who is the National Coordinator of the Academic Research Network for Improved Nutrition in Nigeria, said nutrition is linked to development and passing laws in support of nutrition is key.
“If our people and children are to grow up healthy, we must take care of their nutritional needs.
“Also, the mother who is carrying the fetus or baby in her womb needs to be well nourished because the baby in her womb also gets its nourishment from the nutrients in her body.”
Not only that, Anigo argued that because of the effects of so-called intergenerational malnutrition, there needs to be an intentional focus on ensuring that both mother and child are well nourished once the child is born.
“This malnutrition is an issue that can affect individuals across generations.
“There are so many things happening that we don’t understand, like cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease.
“Some of these conditions may be the result of nutritional deficiencies during fetal development.
“Also, after your child is born, there are still 1,000 days in your life.
The first 1,000 days from conception to two years is a critical period for brain cell development.
“If the necessary nutrition and environment are not provided and the child misses out at that point, any damage that occurs to brain development cannot be reversed.
“So most of our interventions are targeted at mothers and children in the first 1,000 days of life because that’s such a critical period.
“We are here to educate lawmakers on the importance of nutrition and the gravity of the current public health problem of malnutrition in Nigeria.”
However, Anigo stressed that strong political will from the government is needed.
“Thankfully, the legislature is the branch of government that decides on the allocation of resources and also monitors the utilisation of those resources. So as awareness increases, the legislature will know that they need to allocate adequate resources to nutrition issues.”
Furthermore, Anigo said accountability is also very important as one of the mandates to address nutritional issues in each state and even the country is to monitor the funds allocated and how those funds are being utilized.”
CS-SUNN BOT Chairperson Mbang Khuwhle Adda also urged the MPs to not only implement policies that will lead to improved nutrition but also ensure that they reach the grassroots.
Kuofure Adda said government should consider partnering with the agriculture sector to produce easily accessible, affordable and nutritious food.
“So I think currently there are a number of ministries that are responsible for a lot of nutrition interventions, but it would make a lot of sense if we had the full support from the highest level of government.
“We will now be coordinating activities that are being undertaken by state and local governments. We will also have dedicated staff to handle different aspects of nutrition interventions.”
“Let’s not forget, we’re looking at nutrition interventions. It’s not just about putting food on the table. We need to think about production long before food gets on the table.”
“We need to think about the role of agriculture. We need to understand the role of education. Some people think agriculture is just for eating.
“But they don’t know that just eating isn’t enough. Is what you’re eating nutritious enough?” she asked.
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