The United Nations, on Monday, warned of a “deepening crisis” of malnutrition across the Middle East and North Africa, affecting one-third of children.
The statement reads:
“At least 77 million – or 1 in 3 – children in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have some form of malnutrition.”
It stated that 55 million children in the 20 nations studied are overweight or obese, which UNICEF deems a form of malnutrition.
According to the report, an additional 24 million children suffer from malnutrition, which includes stunting, wasting, and being thin.
“The deepening crisis of malnutrition in the region is being driven by what and how children are fed, poor access to nutritious foods, clean water, medical care and other essential services, and the proliferation of cheap, unhealthy poor foods high in salt, sugar and fat.”
This occurs with “ongoing conflicts, political instability, climatic shocks, and rising food prices that together, deny children their right to nutritious food and limit humanitarian access to vulnerable communities.”
Adele Khodr, UNICEF regional director, stated that only one-third of young infants receive nutritious diets.
She said:
“This is a shocking statistic in 2024 and risks becoming even worse as conflicts, crises and other challenges in our region persist.”
UNICEF advised nations to prioritise nutrition in their planning and policies.
Last month, UN agencies said that conflict, economic turbulence, and climate change impeded attempts to combat hunger, which affects approximately 9% of the world’s population.
In a paper, they anticipated that approximately 733 million people would go hungry in 2023, a figure that has stayed mostly stable for three years after a significant surge following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Moderate and severe food insecurity, which causes people to skip meals on occasion, afflicted 2.33 billion people last year, accounting for almost 29% of the global population, according to the report.