The report concluded that “55 million children in the region are overweight or obese, with these forms of malnutrition on the rise among school-age children in all countries of the region.”
The report indicated that “24 million other children suffer from malnutrition, including stunting, wasting and thinness.”
Despite progress made over the past 20 years in reducing the prevalence of stunting at the regional level, the problem still persists on a large scale, affecting 10 million children under the age of 5 in the region, according to UNICEF.
“The Middle East and North Africa region faces an increasingly complex triple burden of malnutrition that undermines the growth, development and future potential of its children,” said UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Adele Khodr.
“Only a third of young children get the nutritious foods they need to grow, develop and thrive,” she added.
“This is a shocking statistic in 2024 and risks becoming worse as conflicts, crises and other challenges persist in our region,” she continued.
“The malnutrition crisis in the region is exacerbated by what and how children are fed, poor access to nutritious foods, clean water, medical care and other basic services, and the prevalence of cheap, unhealthy foods high in salt, sugar and fat,” UNICEF said.
This crisis, according to the organization, is occurring “against a complex backdrop of ongoing conflict, political instability, climate shocks and rising food prices, which together deprive children of their right to nutritious food and limit humanitarian access to vulnerable communities.”
From crises caused by conflict, hunger and child wasting in Sudan and Yemen, to the double burdens of child stunting and overweight in Egypt or Libya, each unique context requires a tailored response that focuses on the forms of malnutrition in that context and their underlying causes, according to UNICEF.
Many of the same challenges affect women of reproductive age, with 9 million women, or 5 percent, in the Middle East and North Africa region underweight, and 114 million women, or 68 percent, overweight or obese. In 17 countries in the region, the prevalence of overweight or obesity among adult women exceeds 60 percent, well above the global average of 45 percent, according to UNICEF.
UNICEF called on governments to “prioritize nutrition in their national development plans, policies and budgets.”
She stressed that she will continue to support countries as they collect crucial nutrition data for mothers and children to strengthen action and implement programmes.
The UN agency stressed the need to intensify efforts to prevent and treat all forms of malnutrition and ensure every child’s right to food and nutritious diets.
Source: news.un
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2024-08-21 21:16:57
