In brief
The shortage of ready-to-use therapeutic food could lead to severe malnutrition issues for approximately two million children in Africa. Countries such as Mali, Nigeria, Niger, and Chad are already out of crucial supplies, and several others might follow suit by mid-2025. Urgent funding and action are needed to restore these life-saving resources.
The looming scarcity of a vital treatment product for malnourished children in Africa has led to a critical situation, with nearly two million children at severe risk, according to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). The life-saving peanut-based ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) is running out in four countries: Mali, Nigeria, Niger, and Chad. This predicament could soon extend to eight more nations, including South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Uganda by mid-2025.Victor Aguayo, UNICEF’s director for child nutrition and development, emphasized the pressing need for immediate action to prevent this "silent killer" from claiming the lives of vulnerable children. Severely malnourished children suffer from compromised immune systems, exposing them to life-threatening diseases endemic in poorer countries, such as diarrhea, pneumonia, malaria, and measles.Globally, severe acute malnutrition affects an estimated 19 million children under age five, contributing to approximately 400,000 deaths annually, according to the World Health Organization. Despite previous efforts where 73% of affected children received RUTF, recent events such as war, climate change, and supply chain disruptions have exacerbated the hunger crisis in several African regions, notably the Sahel.To tackle this challenge, UNICEF has successfully raised $933 million since 2022 for its malnutrition programs. However, it urgently seeks an additional $165 million to replenish RUTF supplies, supplemented by a recent $100 million donation from the United States to avert this impending catastrophe.
