By Philip Yatai

An NGO, Save the Children International (SCI), on Friday called on the Federal and State governments to integrate the  first 1,000 days  of a child’s life into child-centred social protection programmes.

Mrs Saudatu Zahradeen, the NGO’s Advocacy and Communication Specialist on Child Development Grant Programme in Abuja, made the call at a Child Development Grant Programme (CDGP) inception meeting in Kaduna.

Zahradeen said that a child’s  first 1,000 days in life was a period from child’s conception to his or her  two years in life.

According to her, the first 1,000 days is also a critical period that presents crucial window of opportunity for uninterrupted growth and development of a child.

“If the mother is not adequately fed during conception, the child will be exposed to all kinds of malnutrition, particularly stunting.

“Therefore, the mother must be properly fed with all the needed nutrients, minerals and vitamins for the nourishment of the child.

“After delivery, both the child and the mother must be provided with adequate nutrition; the child must be exclusively breastfed and introduce appropriate complementary feeding after six months.

“This will ensure the child’s healthy growth and development,’’ she said.

Zahradeen described child-centred social protection as public policies, programmes and systems that helped the poor and vulnerable individual and households to access basic needs of life.

“This will help in creating the needed awareness on the significance of adequate nutrition in the first 1,000 days of life and reduce economic and social vulnerability,” she said.

The NGO’s Social Protection and Inclusion Coordinator, Eunice Victor, also said that the first 1,000 days was the foundation for child’s brain development with 799 new neural connections established every second.

“This presents an opportunity to preventing child malnutrition, particularly stunting which is irreversible.

“Integrating 1,000 days window with social protection will therefore help in addressing inadequate feeding practices, household’s food insecurity and improve access to health services and hygiene,” she said.