(Richard Alleyne, UNICEF USA) — EAST HARARGHE, Ethiopia — UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has attributed the current surge in global food prices to a host of factors, including: escalating energy prices, lack of investment in agriculture, increasing demand, trade distortions subsidies and recurrent bad weather.
In the eastern Ethiopian province of East Hararghe Zone of Oromiya Regional State—a region with over 30 million residents—the effects of the food crisis and an extended dry season threaten the tenuous gains the country has made with regard to child nutrition.
Already among the countries in the world with the highest rates of child mortality and malnutrition, just how severe the problem becomes in this part of Ethiopia depends largely on the financial soundness of a community-based intervention model known as Enhanced Outreach Strategy (EOS). Developed and implemented three years ago by UNICEF and its partners, in conjunction with the Ethiopian government, the strategy delivers low-cost, high-impact interventions such as nutrition screenings, vaccinations, deworming pills and vitamin A supplementation to children in order to avert crisis when emergencies crop up.
Subsistence farmers throughout Ethiopia rely on two rainy seasons a year: the “meher” from June to July and the “belg” from January to February. This year the “belg” rains came late.
“Because there were no “belg” rains to speak of this year, we are seeing livestock deteriorate and crops that could not be ready for harvest,” said Samson Desie, UNICEF Nutrition Specialist in Ethiopia. “But what we’re also seeing are children who are suffering from severe acute malnutrition.”
At the Bissidimo Hospital in East Hararghe, Desie explains the nutrition screening process and EOS at work:
“By conducting mid-upper arm circumference, height and weight measurements our workers at the community level are able to refer mothers with children diagnosed with moderate malnutrition to a supplemental feeding program,” said Desie. “Those diagnosed with severe acute malnutrition come here to this UNICEF supported therapeutic feeding program.”
Hospital staff members in Bissidimo prepare therapeutic milk supplied by UNICEF and known as F-75. It is administered following UNICEF feeding protocols for case management of severe acute malnutrition. In many cases mothers are also given packets of Plumpy’nut to feed their children in order to combat the effects of malnutrition. A ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF), Plumpy’nut is a high protein, high energy peanut-based paste in a foil wrapper that can be administered at home rather than at feeding centers or hospitals and can be eaten without any preparation.
The number of referrals to Bissidimo and similar facilities has risen steadily since last December. One of UNICEF’s partners has been the World Food Program (WFP), which works with the government’s agency responsible for disaster prevention and preparedness in administering targeted supplemental food distribution. This distribution is meant for treatment of moderate malnutrition and prevention of severe malnutrition.
Because of the increase in global food prices, WFP has had to close down a number of supplementary feeding centers. Those in Oromiya region—where there were 118 sites—have now been reduced to 28; and in Haraghe zone where 21 sites were in operation, now only six remain open.
The head of WFP has called the current food crisis a “silent tsunami” which threatens to affect the over 70 million people globally.
“We know the system we have in place works, and we are beginning to notice behavioral change at the community level. Families are beginning to understand what to do to keep their children well nourished,” said Desie. “But if we’re unable to keep the system well oiled with resources and financing, we could end up slipping backward.”