A Non-Governmental Organisation, Maternal Neo-Natal Child Health coalition has expressed concerns over the increase in under-five mortality in Gombe State.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that MNCH coalition is a group of experts in diverse fields, advocating for improvement in reproductive child health and nutrition in the state.
Chairman of the group, Mr. Alhassan Yaya, disclosed this in an interview with NAN on Tuesday in Gombe.
According to him, the state is recording an under-five mortality rate of 162 per 1,000 live births; and infant mortality rate of 90 per 1,000 live births as shown by Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2016.
“The figure is very high and alarming; the only solution is to improve the standard of our primary health care facilities.
“Establishment of state health insurance scheme will also go a long way in addressing the problem,” he said.
Yaya, who quoted sources from National Demographic Health Survey 2018, said nutrition had been neglected in the well-being of children.
He said 51.2 per cent of children under age five suffer from stunted growth, while 17.0 per cent children wasted and 33.2 per cent are underweight.
The chairman identified some of the probable causes of malnutrition as lack of food, improper feeding, lack of economic and political structures, law status and lack of education among women.
He, therefore, recommended a multi-sectoral approach to tackle the problem.(NAN)
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