Nigeria gets WFP, ECOWAS $1m support to combat malnutrition

The Economic Community of West African States and the World Food Programme have contributed $1 million in multipurpose cash and wholesome food to alleviate the impact of the food crisis and malnutrition issues in North-West Nigeria.

Partners in the agreement stated that the assistance was provided as a part of the stabilization fund, which was established to help with the region’s food problem. Speaking during the ECOWAS-FMHAPA-WFP stabilization project phase 2 inauguration in Katsina on Friday, Manuela Reinfeld, the Deputy Head of the Program at WFP Abuja, stated that the WFP had provided the fund with approximately $600,000.

The money, according to her, will pay for related expenses to address the problem of malnutrition, particularly for expectant mothers who are nursing and their young children.

In addition, Reinfeld stated that the WFP would support the vulnerable by giving unconditional food assistance with roughly 5,000 metric tonnes of wheat from Ukraine for Katsina, Sokoto, and Zamfara States.

The fund was intended to enable therapeutic supplementary feeding, such as soya-corn blend for the ladies. Also, we’re attempting to assist them in addressing the underlying causes of malnutrition. We are focusing on women and providing them with activities that help them develop resilience.

We will be dispersing roughly 5,000 metric tonnes here in the North-West, with 2,000 of that amount going to Katsina. The $1 million payment from ECOWAS for this intervention has been augmented by roughly $600,000 from the WFP to meet related expenses, the spokesperson said.

She said that since the recipients would receive wheat grains for the following three months, the $1 million was going directly to them. Reinfeld states that by year’s end, other local government districts will receive a comparable scheme.

The Chairperson of the ECOWAS Permanent Representative Committee and Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the Organization, Musa Nuhu, stated that the fund for stabilization was created by ECOWAS to support victims of terrorism and later extended to include people impacted by banditry.

The idea to allocate $1 million annually to Nigeria to support social alleviation programs for victims of insecurity in the North-East and North-West was therefore proposed by the ECOWAS Commission.
The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation in Nigeria is mandated by law to address the humanitarian needs of our people.

For this reason, ECOWAS and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs are constantly collaborating to develop implementation strategies,” the speaker stated.
The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, ECOWAS, and the World Bank were congratulated for their support by the Kastina State Government, Dikko Radda, who added that the initiative would empower and transfer best practices to the state’s institutions during its implementation.
The project will empower and transfer best practices to the state’s institutions during its implementation, according to the Kastina State Government, Dikko Radda, who praised ECOWAS, the World Food Program, and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs for their support.
Olumuyiwa Enitan, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, stated that program participants were carefully chosen based on international best practices since they were the state’s most vulnerable citizens.
He announced that 7,347 beneficiaries were chosen from two local government areas in Katsina State and that 14,694 vulnerable individuals were chosen from Kastina and Sokoto State.

Enitan claims that the ultimate objective of these initiatives is to guarantee a day in the future when everyone can live in peace, stability, and prosperity—rather than just as ideals or wishful thinking.

Reference and Citation

Punchng.com- Nigeria gets WFP, ECOWAS $1m support to combat malnutrition