Group urges FG, states to increase nutrition budget

From: Femi Oyelola, Kaduna

A group, Civil Society Scaling up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN) has called on all policymakers at federal and state levels to ensure prompt release of fund to improve the nutritional status of the citizen.
The Executive Secretary, Beatrice Eluaka made the call in a statement made available to the media in Kaduna yesterday.
The statement which was a release after the National Scaling Up Nutrition Pooled Fund Window 1, Project End-Point Review, Reflection. and Accountability meeting, called on state chapters to continue with nutrition advocacy in order to get t right result held recently.
Eluaka asked state chapters to of Group to continue with nutrition advocacy and intensify effort that will bring about positive feedback.
“We need to establish nutrition champions at the state level, who will be able to work with the budget on the ground, and also seek for more technical support.
“We have been able to get information across to key policymakers in addressing nutritional status in their states.”
The Executive Secretary, therefore called on state chapters to come up with State Specific action plan that will benefit the citizen.
She said the CS- SUN Movement Pooled Fund is a catalyst and last-resort source of grants to support multi-stakeholder platforms in C- SUN countries, in order to increase the effectiveness and impact of national efforts to end malnutrition in all its forms by February 1.
The Chairman of the Steering Committee, CS-SUNN, Dr David Olayemi stressed the need to scale up nutrition intervention in Nigeria across different platforms.