Many mothers are so poor that they are selling a life-saving food supplement meant for babies and young children just to get money to feed their whole families.

Compared with last year, there has been a staggering increase of 48% in the number of babies and children of up to five years in Borno State who are suffering from malnutrition – but many impoverished mothers who receive a much-needed and lifesaving food supplement for free are selling it instead of giving it to their small children.

The indigent mothers, who live in internally displaced persons’ camps and in host communities, say they sell the RUTF so that they can get money to buy food for their families.

According to the United Nations Children’s Fund, RUTF is a lifesaving essential supply item that treats severe wasting in children under the age of five. Wasting is defined as low weight-for-height and happens when someone has not had enough food or food of adequate quality. If not appropriately treated, wasting in children is associated with a higher risk of death.

RUTF is made from powdered milk, peanuts, butter, vegetable oil, sugar and a mix of vitamins and minerals. One RUTF sachet combines 500 calories and micronutrients that have:

• High nutritional value allowing malnourished children to gain weight quickly;
• A two-year shelf life, making it convenient to store in a warehouse;
• An appealing taste and easy digestibility; and
• Needs no preparation – children eat it directly from the packet.

In Borno State, mothers collect their weekly supply of RUTF from hospitals, clinics and primary healthcare centres. The state government helps to distribute it, along with non-governmental organisations Action Against Hunger and the Albarka Health Spring Foundation.

But, because so many mothers are so poor, they keep a little of the RUTF for their children and sell the rest. In most cases, it is the only way destitute mothers can make money. But it is having a devastating effect on their babies and young children and the number of malnourished kids is increasing instead of decreasing.

Fatima Mustapha, a mother who lives in a host community in Maiduguri, said: “This is the first time I have collected the food supplement for my one-year-old daughter. I didn’t even know that she was malnourished. I took her to the hospital because I thought she had a teething problem. The doctor examined her and he told me that she is malnourished. I was not surprised to hear that. I’m breastfeeding with an empty stomach. I do not have money and It’s difficult to put food on our table every day. Because I do not eat enough and what I do eat is not nutritious, I cannot produce enough milk to feed her. I give her whatever food can get just so that she will survive.

“I always pray to God to ease our situation. I will ensure that I give my child the supplement and will not sell it. I am aware that some mothers sell the supplement to generate an income.”

Zarah Abubakar, an internally displaced person originally from Bama, said: “At first my son was diagnosed with severe malaria. After prescribing drugs for him, the doctor also recommended that his nutritional level should be checked. He confirmed that my son was also suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM).

“It is hard when you’re poor to look after our children properly and that has contributed to the problem of malnourished kids. There are so many mosquitoes and the food we give our children is not nutritious enough. I have been getting this food supplement for about seven weeks but my son is still suffering from malnutrition. I know it’s because I am not giving the RUTF to him according to instructions. I sell some of it to get money so that I can get food for the whole family. But I have decided to stop selling it because my son’s condition has not improved. He should be getting the full amount.”

Aisha Usman, an IDP originally from Konduga, told RNI that she had been collecting the supplement for about two months. What is really causing my daughter’s malnourishment is that she is not getting the right food and I also do not pay enough attention to her because I’m always so busy hustling to get food and money.

“Life has always been harsh. Our diet primarily consists of guinea corn [sorghum] and soaked cassava, popularly known as garri. We live in poverty. We normally only eat one meal a day, sometimes two if we are lucky. My daughter’s condition worsened because I am not producing enough milk to breastfeed her. After running a series of tests on her, the doctor confirmed that she has severe acute malnutrition.”

Mohammed Kashim, a doctor from the New GRA Clinic in Maiduguri, told RNI that the number of malnourished children was increasing despite the government’s efforts to provide the food supplement for the children.

“It’s a serious concern. As a result of the 14 years of conflict and insecurity in Borno State there are thousands of people living in dire poverty. Insecurity still exists. The price of food has skyrocketed. And many people do not have access to healthcare. Millions of people have been displaced.

“Mothers of malnourished children are given the food supplement known as RUTF. It is free and meant for children from about six months up to the age of five years. But, unfortunately, many mothers sell the supplement instead of giving it to their malnourished children.

“Our statistics show that in September, there were 495 cases of severe acute malnutrition and 367 cases of moderate acute malnutrition. We have never witnessed so many cases of malnutrition in our clinic before.

In a report by the United Nations, Matthias Schmale, the humanitarian coordinator for Nigeria, said the projection for northeast Nigeria was grim: two million children under age five may suffer from acute malnutrition in the Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY) states this year due to a lack of nutritious food. About 700,000 of these children may suffer life-threatening severe acute malnutrition (SAM). This is more than double the number of SAM cases in 2022 and the highest levels projected since the nutrition crisis in 2016.

In Maiduguri, Borno State’s capital, there was a 48% increase in the number of children with complicated acute malnutrition requiring inpatient care during the first quarter of this year, compared to the same period last year.

FALMATA MOHAMMED ALI