The United Nations Children’s Fund on Monday handed over 11,580 cartons of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food to the Gombe State Government.

The consignment is meant to support the treatment of children suffering from acute malnutrition.

The Chief of UNICEF Bauchi Field Office, Dr Nuzhat Rafique, disclosed this during the handing-over ceremony, where she commended the state government for providing N500m as counterpart funding for nutrition interventions in 2025.

Rafique said the state’s contribution was matched with an equal amount through the Child Nutrition Fund, facilitating the procurement of essential nutrition supplies for vulnerable children.

She said the consignment contained millions of sachets of RUTF, a specialised therapeutic food used in treating children with severe acute malnutrition.

She stressed the need for proper distribution and monitoring to ensure that the supplies reached the children for whom they were intended.

“RUTF is specifically meant for children suffering from severe acute malnutrition and should not be used as regular food,” Rafique said.

She urged community-based groups, including Mama2Mama and Fathers for Good Health, to intensify public awareness about the proper use of the therapeutic food.

The UNICEF official also emphasised that children undergoing treatment must complete the prescribed course without interruption, urging parents and caregivers to follow instructions from health workers.

According to her, adherence to treatment protocols is essential to achieving the desired nutritional and health outcomes.

Rafique further commended the state government for establishing a committee to prevent the diversion, abuse and misuse of aid supplies.

She called for effective monitoring and accountability mechanisms to ensure that the therapeutic food was not diverted from its intended beneficiaries.

The Gombe State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Prof Bertha Abdu, appreciated UNICEF for its sustained support for the state, particularly interventions aimed at improving the welfare of women and children.

Abdu said adequate nutrition was fundamental to children’s growth and development, warning that nutritional deficiencies during childhood could result in serious health and developmental challenges.

She stressed the importance of sustained investment in nutrition programmes to safeguard the wellbeing of children.

Also speaking, the Commissioner for Science, Technology and Innovation, Habu Dahiru, said raising children who were physically healthy and mentally sound was critical to the state’s future development.

He described RUTF as an important intervention in the treatment of severe acute malnutrition, adding that the state government was complementing UNICEF’s efforts through the local production of nutrient-rich food.

Dahiru disclosed that the ministry had scaled up production of the locally developed nutritious food and was collaborating with the North-East Development Commission to expand the production facility to serve Gombe and neighbouring states.

He said the ministry was ready to work with UNICEF and other development partners to increase production, particularly to support efforts to address moderate malnutrition.

“We are ready to collaborate with UNICEF and other development partners to expand the production of locally made nutritious food and strengthen efforts to tackle malnutrition,” Dahiru said.

He assured that the state government would closely monitor the distribution of the donated RUTF to ensure that the supplies reached children requiring treatment.

In his remarks, the state Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Micah Sunday, described UNICEF as a key development partner supporting the state government’s efforts to improve children’s wellbeing and development.

Sunday said tackling malnutrition would improve not only children’s physical health but also their brain development, educational outcomes and overall wellbeing.

He added that adequate nutrition was essential to raising healthy and productive citizens capable of contributing meaningfully to society.

The donation is expected to strengthen Gombe State’s response to severe acute malnutrition and improve access to life-saving nutritional treatment for vulnerable children across the state.

Source: punchng.com

FOLLOW US ON:

FACEBOOK

WHATSAPP CHANNEL

TWITTER

PINTEREST

TIKTOK

YOUTUBE

LINKEDIN

INSTAGRAM

Jigawa State Governor, Umar Namadi, has pledged to review the allowances of National Youth Service Corps members posted to the state.

The governor made the pledge on Monday when he visited the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp in Fanisau, Dutse, during the passing-out ceremony for the 2026 Batch C Stream corps members.

Namadi said the proposed increase was to appreciate the contributions of corps members to the development of the state and cushion the effects of the current economic challenges.

He said, “We will review up and increase NYSC corpers allowance posted to the state to encourage them to give their best.”

The governor congratulated the corps members on completing their mandatory six-week orientation course and urged them to be good ambassadors of the scheme.

He also announced an immediate N10,000 transport allowance for each corps member to ease movement to their places of primary assignment.

“We have provided N10,000 transportation allowance to each of you to ease your movement to your places of primary assignment,” he said.

Namadi said the government would consider constructing a bigger hall at the camp to accommodate more corps members during activities.

He said, “We will look at the possibility of construction of a bigger hall at this camp for your large gatherings.”

The governor also assured the corps members that the state government would procure a larger generator to address power supply challenges at the NYSC camp in Fanisau.

According to him, the intervention would improve the welfare and living conditions of corps members and camp officials.

He said, “We will procure a larger generator at the NYSC camp in Fanisau to ensure steady power supply.”

Earlier, the NYSC Jigawa State Coordinator, Muhammad Baba, commended the governor for his continued support for the scheme.

Baba said the Batch C corps members had been adequately trained and found worthy in character and learning to proceed to their primary assignments.

He said, “These corps members have completed the mandatory orientation course and are ready to contribute to the development of Jigawa State.”

The coordinator thanked the governor for the transport allowance and other interventions at the camp.

He appealed to the state government to sustain its support to enable the scheme to achieve its objectives.

Baba also urged the corps members to respect the cultures of their host communities and contribute meaningfully to their development.

Source: punchng.com

FOLLOW US ON:

FACEBOOK

WHATSAPP CHANNEL

TWITTER

PINTEREST

TIKTOK

YOUTUBE

LINKEDIN

INSTAGRAM