.Govs, ministers back stronger local action on child nutrition
Deji Elumoye in Abuja
The federal government and the 36 states have pledged to deepen collaboration at the grassroots as Nigeria moves to translate its nutrition policies into measurable improvements in communities and households.
The renewed push is aimed at strengthening nutrition delivery through coordinated action across health, education, agriculture, water, sanitation and social protection, with states and local governments expected to play a central role in implementation.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Nigeria–Ethiopia Nutrition Leadership Exchange in Addis Ababa, Vice President Kashim Shettima who the Nigerian delegation which included governors and ministers, said Ethiopia’s experience offers useful lessons for Nigeria’s efforts to tackle malnutrition and child stunting through stronger national and subnational coordination.
Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State said interventions must pay particular attention to children under five and pregnant women, noting that while Nigeria has recorded some progress, there is room for improvement.
“Especially for the young ones under five and, of course, pregnant women, it is very, very important.
“We have some success, but we can improve on it. That is why I am here, to learn from our counterparts in Ethiopia,” Adeleke said.
On the part of his Abia State counterpart, Dr. Alex Otti, Nigeria must be willing to learn from countries that have achieved progress rather than attempt to reinvent the wheel.
“There’s nothing wrong with saying that we have not done well. And there’s also nothing wrong in learning from those who have done it, so that you don’t go reinventing the wheel,” Otti said.
He stressed that nutrition goes beyond food security, saying progress requires coordinated interventions in healthcare, education, agriculture, climate action and poverty reduction.
“Today, we have learned that it’s not just about food security. It’s also about health. It’s about education. It’s about climate change. It’s about agriculture. So, a whole lot of things are intertwined,” he said.
Otti said Abia State had recruited 9,469 teachers, was developing 20 smart schools and rehabilitating more than 200 primary and secondary schools, while committing about 20 per cent of its annual budget to education.
For Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, insecurity has worsened nutrition challenges in a state traditionally known for substantial food production.
“In the past, when you spoke about nutrition, we didn’t even have anything like that in the state because we produced enough to feed our people. However, because of those challenges now, it has become difficult,” he said.
Lawal, however, said insecurity must not define the state, stressing the need to align with federal government programmes while adapting interventions to local circumstances.
“Should we be defined by insecurity? The question is no. What else can we do?” he asked.
Also speaking, Governor Umar Namadi of Jigawa State said Ethiopia’s experience under the Seqota Declaration offers useful lessons for Nigeria’s Nutrition 774 Initiative, particularly in taking interventions beyond national and state institutions to households.
“The one thing that is very important with 774 is the fact that it will have to go down from the national level to each local government, each ward, each community and each household,” he said.
Namadi said Jigawa had complemented federal interventions with homegrown initiatives, including the Masaki programme and a “Tom Brown” nutrition programme under which about 600 women had been trained to produce nutritious food for children.
On his part, Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, said nutrition was central to human capital development and required a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach.
“Nutrition is key to human capital development, and it requires sectors to work together in a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach,” he said.
According to him, Nigeria has made progress through coordinated national interventions and community-based programmes but must now deepen and accelerate implementation.
“We have to now go back and deepen the progress, accelerate,” Pate said.
The minister disclosed that Nigeria and Ethiopia would develop a roadmap from lessons emerging from the exchange, expressing optimism that sustained implementation could deliver significant results in the coming years.
“There are reasons to be optimistic that if we continue in this direction over the next four to five years, Nigeria will achieve remarkable success in dealing with key issues affecting the people of Nigeria, particularly the children who are the future of our country,” he said.
In his intervention, Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, said nutrition interventions must begin from pregnancy and continue through the critical early years of a child’s development.
“If we miss that period, the 2,000 days, we’ve set those children up for failure in life,” he said.
He noted that the Nutrition 774 agenda was designed to move interventions from the federal government through states and local governments directly to communities.
“We have an expansive 774 Nutrition Agenda that drives our nutrition agenda from the federal to the subnational government, state, local government and the community,” Alausa said.
Also speaking, Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, linked improved nutrition to water security, agricultural production, sanitation and healthy living.
“When we talk about the workforce, we must first talk about healthy living. A human being must be healthy before he can impact positively in any role given to him,” he said.
Utsev stressed that reliable water supply was critical not only for drinking and sanitation but also for irrigation, food production and the broader effort to improve nutrition outcomes across the country