The United States Government through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in collaboration with the Federal Government of Nigeria and other stakeholders, have organized a trade fair in Abuja to foster innovation and collaboration to address severe acute malnutrition.
The trade fair tagged: “Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods (RUTF) and other Life-Saving Nutrition Commodities Expo”, provided a platform for government officials, the donor community, and manufacturers to discuss challenges, share experiences and explore collaborative opportunities in expanding RUTF.
It also allowed local manufacturers, investors, and other operators in the RUTF to showcase their products and innovations.
Also, USAID Mission Director Dr Anne Patterson explained that expanding local access to affordable life-saving nutrition commodities is essential to addressing severe malnutrition in Nigeria children.
In Nigeria, severe acute malnutrition remains a significant public health concern, affecting 3.6 million children.
The 2021 Food Consumption and Micronutrients Survey revealed that the prevalence of severe malnutrition in Nigerian children has increased from seven to 12 percent over the last five years.
Alarmingly, only 2.8% of these children received treatment with therapeutic foods due to inadequate access to RUTF. one aspect of increasing access to this lifesaving treatment is being addressed through the local production and procurement of RUTF.
According to the Interim Chief of Party for the USAID funded Feed the Future Nigeria Rural Resilience Activity, John Rachkara, the Trade Fair is a game changer.
“Supporting local production of specialized nutritious products and facilitating linkages for local sourcing of raw materials will undoubtedly drive down the cost of RUTF production’’, he said.
Mr Rachkara said if the costs come down, more lives will be saved with the same amount of resources.
