Bukola Afeni
Editor
The World Food Program said that the COVID-19 pandemic, has brought deterioration in children’s nutrition and food security in Zimbabwe.
The organisation in a statement signed by Princess Sarah Zaid, the special adviser on mother and child nutrition said without adequate dietary diversity and meal frequency, infants and young children are vulnerable to malnutrition, especially stunting and micronutrient deficiencies, which increases the risk of morbidity and mortality.
Zeid, who arrived in Zimbabwe on Saturday, is to give an overview on Wednesday of her visit and shed light on the nutrition situation in the country.
According to a food and nutrition report released in February this year, by the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee, one out of three children in the country suffer from stunting.The World Food Program has projected that by the end of the year 2020, the number of Food insecure people will have surged by nearly 50 percent or 60 percent of the population.
” WFP is currently providing food relief and cash disbursements to vulnerable families in both urban and rural communities. In urban areas, where COVID-19 lockdown measures triggered a massive loss of livelihoods, the number of food insecure people is expected to rise to 3.3 million, from 2.2 million, as the socio-economic consequences of the pandemic become more pronounced.”
