Kaduna Govt, UNICEF Meet to Boost Grassroots Response as State Reports 82% Vitamin A Coverage

From Femi Oyelola, Kaduna

The Kaduna State Planning and Budget Commission, KADPBC, with support from UNICEF, has held a two-day quarterly coordination and review meeting as part of its ongoing campaign to eliminate malnutrition in the state.

The meeting, which opened in Kaduna, brought together the State Committee on Food and Nutrition (SCFN), Nutrition Focal Persons from all 23 Local Government Areas, and key development partners to coordinate existing interventions and enhance collaboration at the grassroots level.

Acting Director of Development Aid Coordination, Mrs. Priscilla Dariya, said the session was meant to evaluate progress in the last two quarters, tackle implementation challenges, share lessons learned, and develop practical strategies to improve community nutrition outcomes.

Dariya emphasized the importance of increased cooperation among government agencies, development partners, and implementing organizations to ensure the effective delivery of nutrition programs. She added that the meeting’s recommendations would support evidence-based planning, boost accountability, and strengthen program implementation throughout the state.

In his welcome address, the Permanent Secretary of the Planning and Budget Commission and Chairman of SCFN, Mukhtar Abdullahi, expressed appreciation to UNICEF and other partners for their unwavering support of Kaduna’s nutrition efforts. He noted that strategic alliances have been crucial in enhancing coordination, improving service delivery, and funding key interventions across the state.

Abdullahi also praised the 23 LGA Nutrition Focal Persons for their resilience, saying: “This grassroots commitment is central to Kaduna State’s overall goal of eliminating malnutrition and protecting the health of our women and children.”

Providing an overview of achievements, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer for Nutrition at the Kaduna State Primary Healthcare Board, Mr. Jibril Isah, stated that the state has maintained political commitment through coordinated implementation of the Multi-Sectoral Food and Nutrition Plan.

Isah revealed that during the June 2026 Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health Week, Kaduna achieved an 82 percent Vitamin A supplementation coverage among children aged six to 59 months. He added that coverage was 81 percent among children aged six to 11 months and 83 percent among those aged 12 to 59 months.

He added that Mid-Upper Arm Circumference screening reached 79 percent statewide, while deworming coverage was at 36 percent during the exercise. PENTA3 immunization coverage was 51 percent, and Sulphadoxine-Pyrimethamine uptake among pregnant women reached 39 percent statewide.

Isah explained that undernutrition remains a major contributor to child mortality, accounting for over 55 percent of diarrhea deaths, 57 percent of malaria deaths, and 45 percent of pneumonia deaths. He noted that Vitamin A supplementation alone can reduce under-five mortality by up to 34 percent. At the same time, routine deworming, nutrition screening, and promotion of exclusive and complementary breastfeeding remain critical for child survival.

The review, he said, will also assess activities on infant and young child feeding, maternal nutrition, commodity availability, routine growth monitoring, and community mobilization across the LGAs. He urged focal persons to improve data quality, timely reporting, and supportive supervision to accelerate progress.

Director of Nutrition at the Kaduna State Primary Healthcare Board, Mrs. Ramatu Haruna, represented by Deputy Program Officer Mr. Christopher Moses, stressed the need for quality data, effective implementation, and sustained commitment. She called for intensified supportive supervision and improved collaboration with community volunteers and health workers to enhance early detection and management of malnutrition.

In a goodwill message, Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist for the Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria, ANRIN 2.0 Project, Mr. Musa Abubakar, described the review as a vital platform for open dialogue. He advocated for a centralized reference tool to guide all nutrition interventions in the state.

“If we have a single unified reference document to use, both non-governmental organizations and the government can utilize it to align and guide our efforts smoothly,” Abubakar said. He encouraged LGA focal persons to remain proactive, noting that high visibility of local achievements is crucial to unlocking greater domestic and international donor support.

Also speaking, Secretary of Civil Society Scaling-Up Nutrition in Nigeria, CS-SUNN, Mrs. Funmilayo Adeoye, reaffirmed the coalition’s dedication to ensuring that every citizen is nutrition-secure.

“I want to see a Kaduna where every mother and every child receives the right nutrition at the exact right time,” she said. Adeoye praised focal persons for compiling ground-level statistics and commended the state government’s ongoing radio and TV campaigns.

“In the past, awareness was low. Today, because of ongoing radio and TV campaigns, nutrition is on everyone’s radar. We have done remarkably well, but we need that final push to reach our ultimate goals,” she added.

Closing the opening session, the Permanent Secretary urged participants to stay focused on the shared goal.

“As we deliberate over the next two days, let us stay focused on ensuring that every child, woman, and family in Kaduna State has access to quality nutrition services, enabling them to live healthier, more productive lives,” Abdullahi said.