By Philip Yatai

The Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) in partnership with World Bank-Supported Accelerating Nutrition Result in Nigeria (ANRiN) trained 300 households and care givers on effective nutrition response during emergencies.  

The Executive Secretary of the agency, Maimuna Abubakar, said at the event on Wednesday in Zaria, that the training was crucial to meet the nutritional needs of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the state.

Abubakar, who was represented by the agency’s Director, Administration and Finance, Mr Aminu Adamu, decried the increasing number of IDPs being recorded in the state.

She said that the challenge of feeding during emergencies was not only the non-availability of food but also how to use available food items to prepare nutritious meals for vulnerable women and children.

According to her, the response and support of stakeholders should address the nutritional needs of displaced women, children and other persons in emergencies.

“This sensitisation was key to ensure improvement in the response of households, caregivers on how to feed their children during emergencies to prevent malnutrition.

“SEMA distributes relief materials to IDPs in the form of food items, but often with no consideration to nutritional content.

“This is why this programme was organised to equip participants on the kind of food that should be distributed to the IDPs and how households and caregivers should feed their children during emergencies.”

The Project Manager, ANRiN, Dr Zainab Muhammad-Idris, said that the sensitization was necessary to ensure that households and caregivers knows the kind of food to prepare for their children during emergencies.

Muhammad-Idris, who was represented by Hajiya Hauwa Usman, Nutrition Officer, Zone 2, said that ANRiN would continue to support in ensuring that households and care givers access quality nutrition services and critical information.  

“We are equally supporting health facilities to ensure uninterrupted nutrition services for women and children and ensuring that health workers provide effective counselling on Infant and young child feeding.

“This sensitisation will ensure that parents and caregivers have necessary information to sustain the right nutrition practices throughout the COVID-19 crisis and other emergencies,” she said.

The Resource Person, Mr Adole Inalegwu, UNICEF Focal Person, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, pointed out that the food needs of people differ during emergencies.

Inalegwu said that households and caregivers, including IDPs camp managers, should ensure that food support tally with the food need of the different categories of people, particularly children.

Earlier, Mrs Rebecca Gaiya, Senior Planning Officer in the agency said that 100 participants were drawn from each of three Senatorial Zones in the state.

Gaiya, who is the agency’s Nutrition Focal Person, said that the sensitisation was designed to increase the knowledge of households and caregivers on how to prepare nutritious meals for children during emergencies.

“It was also organised to sensitise households on how to make the best use of available food items to meet nutritional needs of women and children during emergencies,” she added.

Also speaking, Malam Salisu Lawal, Director, Development Aid Coordination, Planning and Budget Commission, said that protracted conflict was increasing the rate of IDPs in the state.

Lawal added that households and caregivers, including IDP Managers must be sensitised to effectively respond to the nutritional needs of IDPs and other people in emergencies.

The State Nutrition Officer, Mrs Ramatu Haruna, commended SEMA and ANRiN for the sensitisation campaign, stressing that it would go a long way in preventing malnutrition among women and children.