By Kathryn Richards, CARE International UK
Hasana and Meimouna are mothers on the frontline of the food crisis blighting more than seven million people in Niger. They walked 8km from their village of Ratta in 40C heat to take their babies to the Goumbi Kano health clinic, Tahoua region.
Mother of four Hasana only wants the best for her daughter, 10-month-old Farida. But there is a problem: “I have no milk for her. When she cries, I give her millet mixed with water and milk, but it does not have the nourishment she needs.”
Farida, was admitted to the clinic on June 25. She was treated for severe malnutrition and is gaining weight after a course of anti-malarials, antibiotics and Plumpy’nut, a high-energy peanut paste that helps children quickly regain weight. Still, Farida was tired and weak, barely able to lift her head to cry when placed into the weighing sling, hung from a nearby tree.
Seventeen-month-old Saredja looked barely a day older than baby Farida, despite being seven months her elder. Saredja was just 6kg when admitted to the clinic and though gaining weight he is still short of the 7.5kg target which would put him out of the crisis zone. His mother, Meimouna, has not been able to come the clinic for regular weight and height checks.
She said: “We are farmers, but this year our production was really down – there is nothing left in our store. We will stay farming, and hope for a better harvest so our children get well.”
Doctor Mustapha Chaibou mans this isolated health clinic, jointly funded by CARE and the Government of Niger. He studied medicine in Niger, and this is his third year at the clinic. Doctor Chaibou says he sees an average of 20 people a day – mostly malnourished children. He is open seven days a week, there are no weekends.
“These children were seriously malnourished, but if the mothers come regularly for treatment then their prognosis is good, they will be out of danger,” he said.
The catchment area for this clinic is 15 km – that is supposed to be the maximum distance people travel according to the government, but in reality people come from much further, at least 20km. Across Niger, nearly 17 percent of children under five are suffering from acute malnutrition. In some areas, malnutrition rates are a shocking 22 percent – far above the threshold of what indicates a crisis.
To help children and mothers who are most affected, CARE is implementing nutrition programmes for 17,000 moderately malnourished children and 12,000 pregnant or breastfeeding women, providing blanket feeding for 37,500 infants, and supporting local health centres like this one to treat malnourished children.
CARE, in partnership with the World Food Programme, is also providing food to the most vulnerable families, and is implementing school feeding programs to ensure children stay in school.
Doctor Chaibou knows the impact of the food crisis on children’s lives; he sees it everyday and he has a stark warning if the rains do not come: “In the Sahel, even when the rains are good there are many malnourished children. Without the rains, it is a catastrophe. I am sorry.”