Malnutrition, an unequal fate

Severe acute malnutrition mainly affects children under the age of 5 and creates an immediate risk of death. Today, it can be cured through treatment within families and communities, based on specific therapeutic foods. SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL is involved in the prevention of this disease and supports medical and nutritional actors in their work with the most vulnerable people, children under 5 and lactating women. 

All forms of malnutrition, both undernutrition and overnutrition, are serious and have a severe impact on the health of children and the adults they will become. According to UNICEF, the 15 countries most affected are Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Haiti, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Chad and Yemen¹. SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL works in some of these countries, particularly on undernutrition and one of its most serious forms: severe acute malnutrition. This pathology is complex to prevent, as there are many factors involved: people must have access to food that is of high quality but also in sufficient quantity. This dietary balance must be maintained over time to have a real impact on health, but this is still not enough. Diarrheal diseases, caused by the consumption of contaminated water, prevent the patient’s body from absorbing the nutrients from their food. Access to uncontaminated water in a healthy environment is a necessary condition for their avoidance. Inadequate care practices for the child and its mother add greatly to the vulnerability. Action is therefore needed at all these levels to have an impact. 

Preventing malnutrition 

It is always unacceptable to see a child reach the stage of severe undernutrition. This is why the SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL teams are developing a preventive approach and prioritizing areas affected by undernutrition. The families targeted will be those most at risk, with children under two years of age and pregnant or breastfeeding women. 

By tackling the food insecurity and unsanitary environment in the north of the Central African Republic, for example, in the vicinity of the town of Markounda, the SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL teams are helping to limit severe undernutrition there. The population suffers from recurrent armed conflicts that lead to numerous displacements and impoverishment. In these circumstances, acute child malnutrition is, unfortunately, a serious problem. Our NGO is therefore setting up agricultural recovery projects, such as distributing seeds, but also providing food assistance for ultra-vulnerable households that do not have access to land or the physical capacity to cultivate it. Work is also being carried out with residents to understand their eating habits and, if necessary, help them adopt more nutritious practices. At the same time, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL is rehabilitating or creating water points, installing latrines and raising awareness of good hygiene practices, which help to combat open defecation. In this way, people have access to a healthy environment, which helps to limit diarrheal diseases and thus undernutrition. 

Supporting malnutrition medical care 

In contexts where severe acute malnutrition puts children in immediate danger of death, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL facilitates their access to treatment. This is the case in Haiti, where the field team participates in the screening of malnourished children and covers the transport costs of the children screened to the health centers as well as any laboratory analysis costs. Here too, it is important to offer children a healthy environment, and SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL is involved in some medical nutrition centers, creating access points to drinking water and providing the necessary equipment for good hygiene practices, for both staff and patients (soap, masks, chlorine, toilet paper, etc.). In other countries, such as Ethiopia, our NGO provides financial support to the parents of hospitalized malnourished children. 

Almost half of all deaths in children under the age of 5 are due to undernutrition. These catastrophes are, however, preventable. Although the causes are complex, they are also known and remediable. Today, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL is working with the children who suffer from them, but is also ensuring that these issues are taken into account and prioritised by political decision-makers. 

Header photo: © Christophe Da Silva / SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL