Borno: 450 IDPs died of disease, malnutrition in 2015 —Govt •98 children included
Borno: 450 IDPs died of disease, malnutrition in 2015 —Govt •98 children included
Nigerian Tribune, 23 Feb 2016
URL: http://tribuneonlineng.com/borno-450-idps-died-of-disease-malnutrition-in-2015-%E2%80%94govt-%E2%80%A298-children-included
BORNO State government has confirmed that 450 people died from ailments and malnutrition across the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in the state.
Commissioner for Health, Dr Haruna Mshelia, made the disclosure at a press briefing to correct a media report that previously claimed that 450 children died as a result of malnutrition in 2015.
Mshelia said that: “Contrary to media report, statistics show that a total of 54,000 children under the ages of five and below were recorded in all the resettlement camps, in which, 98 children (1.5%) had severe cases of malnutrition and died last year. The figure of the dead toll was misquoted as 450 instead of 98.”
The commissioner, however, disclosed that the 450 deaths were recorded across the IDPs camps including adult and children as a result of commonest ailments and other causes, such as malaria, diarrhoea, pneumonia, measles and malnutrition.
Dr Mshelia pointed out that all children under five living at IDP camps were screened every two to three months for evidence of malnutrition.
He disclosed that in 2015, over 200,000 children were screened, out of which 6,444 were found to be severely malnourished and therefore treated through Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) and Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) programmes of the State Primary Health Care Development Agency (SPHCDA), and supported by UNICEF, Save the Children (SC), Action Against Hunger (AAH) among others.
He, however, noted that the National Demographic and Health Survey Data (NDHS-2013) reveals that even the North-East that suffered much due to insurgency, has an under-five mortality rate of 160 deaths per 1,000, second only to the North-West with 185 deaths per 1,000 population.
Commissioner for Health, Dr Haruna Mshelia, made the disclosure at a press briefing to correct a media report that previously claimed that 450 children died as a result of malnutrition in 2015.
Mshelia said that: “Contrary to media report, statistics show that a total of 54,000 children under the ages of five and below were recorded in all the resettlement camps, in which, 98 children (1.5%) had severe cases of malnutrition and died last year. The figure of the dead toll was misquoted as 450 instead of 98.”
The commissioner, however, disclosed that the 450 deaths were recorded across the IDPs camps including adult and children as a result of commonest ailments and other causes, such as malaria, diarrhoea, pneumonia, measles and malnutrition.
Dr Mshelia pointed out that all children under five living at IDP camps were screened every two to three months for evidence of malnutrition.
He disclosed that in 2015, over 200,000 children were screened, out of which 6,444 were found to be severely malnourished and therefore treated through Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) and Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) programmes of the State Primary Health Care Development Agency (SPHCDA), and supported by UNICEF, Save the Children (SC), Action Against Hunger (AAH) among others.
He, however, noted that the National Demographic and Health Survey Data (NDHS-2013) reveals that even the North-East that suffered much due to insurgency, has an under-five mortality rate of 160 deaths per 1,000, second only to the North-West with 185 deaths per 1,000 population.