UNICEF trains 37 health workers, 50 volunteers

From:Femi Oyelola, Kaduna

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is to train 37 health workers and 50 community volunteers in Kaduna South Local on Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF)
The Chief of Field Office, UNICEF Kaduna,Dr Zakari Adam, disclosed this during the inauguration of the IYCF in the Local Goverment yesterday.
Adam explained that the training volunteers in the LGA will ensure smooth take-off of the comprehensive IYCF services in the LGA.
He said that the goal was to increase access to skilled counselling on breastfeeding and complementary feeding to ensure optimal IYCF practices in the area.
He added that the gesture was part of UNICEF’s mandates to improve the health and nutrition status of women and children through capacity development, supplies and service delivery.
According to him, the promotion of optimal IYCF practices was necessitated by poor maternal, newborn and child nutrition in the state.
He described IYCF as the “bedrock” of child growth and development and preventive approach to child diseases, by ensuring adequate nutrition of the child in the first 1000 days of life.
The first 100- days, beginning from conception to the child’s second birthday, present a crucial window of opportunity to prevent irreversible damages that may arise from malnutrition.
“Any nutritional damage that happens within this period is irreversible and will lead to poor brain development and physical growth, including stunting and wasting in children.
“UNICEF in collaboration with the state Primary Health Care Development Board, had supported the establishment of comprehensive IYCF services in 12 LGAs in the state.
“We are here to inaugurate IYCF services delivery in Kaduna South LGA, bringing UNICEF IYCF supported LGAs to 13 in the state,” he said.
He reiterated UNICEF commitment to working with stakeholders to improve maternal and child nutrition in the state.
Hajiya Aisha-Ummi El-Rufa’i, wife of Gov. Nasir El-Rufa’i and Chairperson, Kaduna Nutrition Emergency Action Plan, thanked UNICEF for the support.
Mrs El-Rufa’i noted that mothers must be supported to exclusively breastfeed their children in the first six months and introduce adequate complementary feeding from six month up to two years.
She said that IYCF services would address the IYCF knowledge gap and basic nutrition; exclusive breastfeeding, proper and informed food selection for complementary feeding; personal, food and environmental hygiene practices among mothers and caregivers.
Mrs Sarah Kwasu, State Team Lead, Alive and Thrive (Fhi 360) urged the trained health workers to step down the IYCF training to other workers and collate adequate data on IYCF practice to improve planning.
Similarly, Ms Jessica Bartholomew, Secretary, Civil Society-Scaling Up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN) commended UNICEF for the efforts and urged the state government to scale up IYCF intervention in the remaining LGAs.
Bartholomew also stressed the need for adequate budgetary provision for nutrition intervention in the state’s 2021 budget to ensure implementation of planned nutrition programmes to curb malnutrition.