UNICEF Seeks N1.2bn Nutrition Funding for Katsina

Francis Sardauna in Katsina 

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has called on the Katsina State Government to increase its investment in child nutrition by allocating N1.2 billion to the Child Nutrition Fund in the 2027 budget.

The Chief of UNICEF Field Office, Kano, Mr. Shafeeq Ur-Rehman, made the request when he led a delegation on a courtesy visit to Katsina State Governor, Dikko Umaru Radda at the Government House weekend. 

Ur-Rehman said the proposed N1.2 billion contribution by the state would be matched by UNICEF to strengthen interventions aimed at tackling malnutrition among children and women in the state.

He said the funding would support the procurement of Multiple Micronutrient Supplements for pregnant women, as well as Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) and other essential commodities for children under five suffering from severe wasting.

He commended the Radda administration for its consistent contribution to the Child Nutrition Fund, describing Katsina as one of the few states in Nigeria that had sustained its financial commitment to the fund over the years.

The UNICEF official stressed the need for increased investment in nutrition, particularly as the state continues to confront the challenge of child malnutrition.

He also disclosed that Katsina State was participating in a global pilot of the revised World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines for the prevention and management of severe wasting in children.

Nigeria, he said, was one of only five countries selected globally for the pilot, which is currently being implemented in 10 local government areas of Katsina State.

Ur-Rehman said: “Katsina’s participation in this pilot is important because the lessons from here will not only contribute to nutrition programming in Nigeria but will also provide useful evidence for the global response to child malnutrition.”

He further commended Governor Radda for making Katsina the first and only state in Nigeria so far to appropriate N270 million for the implementation of a SMART Nutrition Survey.

He said the survey would generate reliable and timely nutrition data to identify vulnerable communities, guide resource allocation and strengthen interventions targeting women and children.

Ur-Rehman reaffirmed UNICEF’s readiness to support the state in conducting the Rapid SMART/SMART+ Nutrition Survey, stressing that evidence-based data remained critical to effectively addressing malnutrition.

Responding, Governor Radda pledged to include UNICEF’s additional N1.2 billion funding request in the state’s 2027 budget “despite the financial constraints facing the government”.

“We are not doing it for you; we are doing it for our people,” the governor said, assuring UNICEF of the state government’s continued commitment to interventions capable of producing measurable improvements in the lives of residents.

Radda said his administration had approved the release of N500 million as counterpart funding for the Child Nutrition Fund and described the investment as part of efforts to improve nutrition, healthcare and other development indicators in the state.

He said the collaboration between Katsina State and UNICEF had yielded encouraging results, particularly in the treatment of child malnutrition, adding that the number of children requiring treatment at stabilisation centres and outpatient treatment sites had begun to decline.

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