Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has raised concerns over Nigeria’s worsening child malnutrition figures, linking the situation to rising food, fuel and transportation costs that he said are making nutritious meals increasingly difficult for many families to afford.
In a statement issued on Thursday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku, who is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), described the malnutrition figures as a troubling indication of the cost-of-living pressures facing Nigerian households.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported food inflation at 19.57 per cent in its latest Consumer Price Index report. The NBS figures also show overall inflation at 15.39 per cent.
Atiku cited figures presented by nutrition experts showing that 41.1 per cent of Nigerian children under five are stunted, while 19.2 per cent are severely stunted. He said the rate rises to 58.2 per cent in the North-West, while nearly two million children are reported to be suffering from severe acute malnutrition, with only about two in every 10 receiving treatment.
“This is the most heartbreaking face of the cost-of-living crisis. Behind every statistic is a Nigerian mother struggling to decide what her children can eat, how much they can eat and how often they can eat,” he said.
“A child does not understand inflation figures. A child only knows whether there is food on the table. When nutritious food moves beyond the reach of millions of families, the consequences eventually appear in the bodies of our children.
“Today, the country is being confronted with figures that should shock the conscience of every leader.”
He said the nutrition figures should be viewed alongside the rising cost of food, transportation and energy, arguing that increases in fuel and transport costs affect more than what consumers pay at filling stations.
‘WHEN FUEL BECOMES EXPENSIVE, COST ARRIVES AT DINNER TABLE’
Atiku said higher energy costs increase the expense of transporting farm produce, moving goods and running small businesses, with the additional costs eventually reaching households.
“When fuel becomes expensive, transporting tomatoes from the farm becomes expensive,” he said.
“Taking rice to the market becomes expensive. Moving children to school becomes expensive. Running the neighbourhood grinding machine becomes expensive. Powering the small shop becomes expensive.
“And eventually, the additional cost arrives at the dinner table. That is why I refuse to accept an economic philosophy in which government simply watches prices rise and tells struggling citizens to endure,” Atiku said.
He said his economic programme was focused on reducing the costs affecting households and businesses, including energy, transportation and production costs.
Atiku also reiterated his proposal for a production subsidy tied to petroleum refined domestically, rather than a return to subsidising imported petrol. He said the proposal was intended to reduce domestic production costs and ensure that lower costs benefit consumers.
He further called for expanded treatment for severely malnourished children, stronger maternal and child nutrition programmes and nutrition budgets that reach communities with the greatest needs.
‘CAN THE ORDINARY NIGERIAN AFFORD TO LIVE?’
Atiku said economic policies should ultimately be assessed by their impact on the ability of ordinary Nigerians to afford basic necessities.
“Economic policy must ultimately answer a very simple question: Can the ordinary Nigerian afford to live?” he said.
He added that the country could not address child malnutrition without also confronting the economic pressures affecting families.
“We cannot build a strong country on the bodies of hungry children. We cannot celebrate economic statistics while mothers are cutting meals and children are denied the nutrition they require to grow,” he stated.
Atiku said his objective was to lower energy, transportation and production costs, strengthen Nigerian production, restore purchasing power and give families more financial room.
