A child in Ethiopia saved from starvation
This piece was originally published in the U.S. Fund for UNICEF's 2009 Annual Report. Download the complete report to read other stories on UNICEF's lifesaving work.
© UNICEF/NYHQ2008-0440/Tegene
Five-year-old Khesna, who is severely malnourished, drinks therapeutic milk F75 at the UNICEF-supported feeding unit of Bissidimo Hospital in East Harerghe Zone of Oromia Region.
When five-year-old Khesna arrived in her father's arms at Bissidimo Hospital in Ethiopia's Oromia Region, she was weak and glassy-eyed from acute malnutrition. Her father, Ibro Bekeri Yusef, had carried the young girl for a full day to get from his small farm to the UNICEF-supported feeding unit at the hospital. Immediately, nutrition workers there assessed Khesna's condition and began a feeding program to help her body recover from the shock of malnutrition.
Soon, Ibro and Khesna were sitting in the hospital's courtyard, where he gently gave her small sips of therapeutic milk from a bright orange cup. The milk is rich in vitamins and micronutrients and is the first food given to severely malnourished children (in small doses, eight times a day) because it helps condition their bodies to digest food again. At first, Khesna's system was unable to cope with even a little milk, and she threw it back up. Slowly but surely, though, her body would begin to adjust.
Global economic crisis makes food situation worse
The global economic crisis has hit Ethiopia incredibly hard—in 2008, food prices nearly doubled. And severe drought has exacerbated an already bad situation. Drought is particularly deadly in this country, where 80 percent of the population lives off the land. Livestock have died, fertilizer is scarce, and fuel prices have skyrocketed. In short, people in Ethiopia— especially children—are in trouble.
UNICEF estimates that over 100,000 of the country's children are severely malnourished. Khesna's father, Yusef, was deeply worried about his six children back at home. "My other children are also suffering," he said. "I used to live well with the income I earned. But now the price of grain has gone up. We can't afford to buy sorghum…. We have no water." A child who is malnourished is not just hungry; malnutrition cripples children's growth, it slows their intellectual development and makes them significantly more vulnerable to deadly diseases.
Malnutrition is a big part of the reason that, every day, more than 24,000 children die from preventable causes.
Plumpy'nut—the miracle food
© UNICEF/ HQ07-0149/Indrias Getachew
10-month-old Bereket, who is being held by his mother, Kutata, has severe acute malnutrition. Philanthropist and U.S. Fund for UNICEF board member Amy Robbins feeds him nutrient enriched Plumpy’nut. The therapeutic food can be fed to children directly from the package, eliminating the risk of contamination in preparation.
In Ethiopia (and many other countries), UNICEF is the main provider of ready-to-use therapeutic foods like Plumpy'nut—a high-protein peanut paste that is a particularly effective tool for fighting malnutrition on a mass scale, because it requires no mixing or refrigeration and comes in easy-to use packets. Plumpy'nut has already saved so many children from starvation; it's often called a miracle food.
UNICEF and its partners are working closely with the Government of Ethiopia to respond to the emergency there. But the problem is huge: UNICEF estimates it will require as much as 1,100 tons of ready-to-use therapeutic foods per month to stave off Ethiopia's nutrition crisis.
And with economic turmoil continuing, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization is now estimating that worldwide hunger will reach an all-time high in 2009, with over 1 billion people—one-sixth of all humanity—undernourished. UNICEF's high-impact, low-cost solutions are making a profound difference in the face of this threat. But as the food shortage continues, UNICEF will need additional donor support to save the lives of scores of other children like Khesna.
To purchase Plumpy'nut and other therapeutic foods for children suffering from acute malnutrition, please visit unicefusa.org/ig-nutrition
