Child Malnutrition: The Case of The Northern Region

The Northern Region is said to be one of the poorest areas of Ghana, recording negative statistics in many areas of socio-economic development. One of such negative development indices is child malnutrition.

Malnutrition in Ghana is measured by three indicators; stunting growth which measures height-for-age, wasting which measures weight-for-height and underweight which measures weight-for-height.

According to the Ghana Health Service, the Northern Region is faced with multiple deprivations which impacts negatively on nutritional outcomes. “For well over two decades, the region’s stunting situation has remained unchanged” Hajia Azara Amadu, a nutrition officer at the Northern Regional Health Directorate told Savannahnews.

“It has 20.0 percent of children less than 5 years underweight, 33.1 percent stunted and 6.3 percent wasted. The region is also faced with high rates of micronutrient deficiencies such as anaemia, iodine deficiency and Vitamin A deficiency”, she said.

“The region is most adversely affected by stunting, with the highest prevalence of 33.1 percent and absolute numbers of stunted children. 

“The region is next to the Central Region when it comes to high prevalence and large numbers of wasted children as the former is recording 7.7 percent whereas the latter is 6.3 percent”, Hajia Azara pointed out.

But this is strange especially in a region where majority of the population consume a lot of vegetables as part of their meals. Indeed, there is vegetable glut during the rainy season and even the poor who do not have some in their farms, can afford to buy them for their meals. 

Besides, almost every household in the region rears some livestock, either ruminants such as goats, sheep, pigs, cattle or poultry birds such as guinea fowl, turkey and fowls. 

The availability of animal and plant based protein in meals of households should be able to address any form of malnutrition in children less than 5 years. But it seems that is not all there is to fighting or addressing issues of malnutrition in children and even adults.

The Nutrition Unit at the Northern Regional Health Directorate according to Hajia Azara, has over the years consistently identified some gaps that exist in the lives of many households and attributes these gaps to the causes of malnutrition among children.

For instance, she cites inadequate dietary intake, disease, insufficient access to food, inadequate maternal and child care practices, poor water and sanitation practices as well as inadequate health services as the leading causes of malnutrition among children in the region.

She said, many women still refused to stick to the exclusive breastfeeding programme of the Ghana Health Service. “Common hygiene practices such as hand washing with soap before breastfeeding a child or after changing a child’s diapers are not adhered to. There is also this misconception that if you give a child eggs to eat she/her will grow up to become a thief and all that….which is not true but many parents belief it”, Hajia Azara explained. 

Statistics from UNICEF, says 4,000 Ghanaian children die each year from diarrhea, and about 23 percent of children suffer from chronic malnutrition linked to poor water and sanitation.

The Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) office at the Northern Regional Coordinating Council has also revealed in its periodic research that, open defecation is still widespread in many of the 26 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies. 

According to the Northern Regional Coordinator, Shaibu Dauda, in an interview with Savannahnews, the region is last but second in the practice of open defecation in the whole country. “Only 5 percent out of the total population have toilet facilities in their homes whereas 13 percent are committed to the use of such facilities".

“Tamale is Ghana’s fourth largest city after Accra, Kumasi and Takoradi. It is also one of the fastest growing cities in West Africa in terms of human population, yet 7 out of 10 residents defecate in the open. It has on three consecutive times scored zero in the latest district Open Defecation Free (ODF) rankings”, he indicated.

Elimination of malnutrition in Ghana is a necessary step for sustained development. This is because, the country is loosing 4.6 billion cedis (6.4 percent of GDP) a year to the effect of child malnutrition. 

About 32 percent of global disease burden in developing countries can be eliminated through improvement in malnutrition. Research shows that undernourished children under five years are more likely to experience cases of anaemia, acute diarrheal syndrome, acute respiratory infection and fever.

Inadequate provision of nutrition beginning in early stages of life can affect the child for the rest of their life in the form of physical and mental development and long term health. 24 percent of all child mortality cases in Ghana are associated undernutrition or malnutrition.  

Also, stunting growth is associated with a substantial reduction in mental capacity and poor school performance. In Ghana, 10.5 percent of all repetitions in schools are associated with stunting.

However, the Northern Regional Health Directorate together with its partners including UNICEF, USAID, SPRING, RING, Systems for Health, Catholic Relief Services, Care International, World Vision and the Christian Children’s Fund of Canada have adopted a strategy to eliminate stunting by 8 percent by December 2018.

According to Hajia Azara Amadu, the Directorate seeking to increase household consumption of iodized salt from 16 percent to 30 percent and increase in iron and folic acid supplementation from 53 percent to 75 percent by December 2018.

“We’re also working hard to decrease the percentage of women having low dietary diversity score from 37 percent to 30 percent by December 2018. This includes promoting the cultivation of micronutrient and protein rich foods as well as promoting the consumption of micronutrient and protein rich foods”, she added.

There is also the need “to increase exclusive breastfeeding from 60 percent to 70 percent and increase minimum dietary diversity score for children age 6-23 months from 10 percent to 25 percent as well as reduce childhood morbidity (Diarrhoea diseases) from 6.3 percent to less than 5 percent by December 2018” Hajia Azara intimated.

By Joseph Ziem,
Development Journalist
Tamale, Northern Region of Ghana.
Mobile: +233553597289