The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) sounded the alarm, after witnessing the number of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women suffering from severe malnutrition, increasing by 25 percent in 12 countries that are the epicenter of a global food crisis, and they are "Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Chad, South Sudan, Sudan, Somalia, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Yemen".
In a report it published today, under the title “Undernourished and Ignored: A Global Nutrition Crisis for Adolescent Girls and Women”, the organization stated that its figures are based on data on underweight and anemia in almost all countries of the world.
She added, "This comprehensive and unprecedented study of the nutritional status of adolescent girls and women worldwide shows that more than a billion adolescent girls and women suffer from undernutrition (including underweight and short stature), deficiencies in essential micronutrients and anemia, with devastating consequences for their lives and well-being. The bulk of this suffering is concentrated in the poorest countries in the world".
She indicated that South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa are the epicenter of the nutritional crisis among adolescent girls and women, as the two regions include two out of every three adolescent girls and women who suffer from underweight in the world, and 3 out of every five adolescent girls and women who suffer from anemia.".
The UN organization warned that inadequate nutrition during the life of girls and women can lead to a weakening of the immune system, impaired cognitive development, and an increased risk of life-threatening health complications, including during pregnancy and childbirth, which in turn has serious and irreversible consequences for the survival and development of their children. and their learning and future ability to earn income".
She explained that half of the cases of stunting among children under the age of two begin during pregnancy or before they reach six months of age".
According to the UNICEF report, worldwide, 51 million children under the age of two suffer from stunted growth, which means that they are very short in stature for their age due to malnutrition. Of these, half of them suffer from stunted growth during pregnancy and during the first six months of life. Their life, in which the child is completely dependent on the nourishment it receives from the mother".
According to the report’s data, between 2020 and 2022, the number of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women suffering from severe malnutrition increased from 5.5 to 6.9 million – or by 25 percent – in 12 countries. "who bore the most severe impacts of the global food and nutrition crisis.
For her part, Catherine Russell, Executive Director of UNICEF, said in a statement, "Without urgent action from the international community, the consequences of this crisis may last for many generations to come".
Russell added "In order to prevent undernutrition among children, we must also address malnutrition among adolescent girls and women".
The report called for giving priority to giving adolescent girls and women access to nutritious, safe and affordable diets".
It also called for the implementation of mandatory legal policies and actions to expand large-scale food fortification programs with nutritional supplements, especially everyday foods such as flour, cooking oil and salt, to help reduce micronutrient deficiencies and anemia among adolescent girls and women.
In conclusion, he recommended accelerating the elimination of discriminatory social norms such as child marriage and the unfair division of food, household resources, income and housework, and expanding access to social protection programs for adolescent girls and the most vulnerable women, including cash transfers and nutrition vouchers.
