The problem of inadequate nutrition is like a recurring decimal for children in many African countries. Now, a global report has harped again on the issue. It says that one of every four children under five years old in southern Africa region is suffering from stunted growth. This means that such children are too short for their age, often as a result of inadequate nutrition.
The unwanted news was revealed at the launch of the 2017 Global Nutrition Report for southern Africa in Johannesburg this week. The Graça Machel Trust and the World Food Program promptly seized the opportunity to describe the indicators for nutrition in the region as alarming.
The two groups further amplified the matter, “Twenty-eight percent of children under the age of five in Southern Africa suffer from stunting, six percent from wasting and one percent from severe wasting. Additionally, 12 percent of children under 5 are underweight. At the same time, there is widespread micronutrient deficiency, and obesity is on the increase.”
Civil society activist and wife of the late Nelson Mandela, Graça Machel, said countries grouped in the Southern African Development Community had made significant progress in reducing levels of malnutrition. Despite this, “malnutrition remains stubbornly high, with two-thirds of countries in the region showing levels of stunting above 30 percent”.
She warned, “These stark findings give a very clear and unambiguous message that governments need to work together with the private sector, civil society and communities in much smarter and collaborative ways to eradicate the scourge of malnutrition.”
Graca Machel argued that both mothers and their children in the region needed better nutrition. According to her, “the lack of adequate nutrition, especially for pregnant women and children in the first two years of their lives, often contributes to the high levels of child mortality, and stunting in southern Africa.
