In July 2023, Faiza, 3 years old, was screened for malnutrition by a community health volunteer in Bulla Geneva, Border Point One (BP-1) location Mandera. Her mother, Binti Abubakar Yussuf, aged 30, shared concerns about Faiza’s persistent illness. Despite seeking various affordable medical treatments, Binti was then using simple herbal medicine she had learned to make to treat her daughter. Her family, like many others, was trying to recover from the impact of the severe Horn of Africa drought that had adversely affected their livelihoods. Binti’s husband, the primary breadwinner for their household of seven, struggled to provide for their basic needs, forcing her to also look for menial jobs to contribute to her household’s income.
Faiza was referred to the Border Point One dispensary, where on arrival, her malnutrition screening by the health care worker revealed a middle-upper arm circumference (MUAC) reading in the yellow zone, indicating moderate malnutrition. At the center, Faiza underwent a two-week program of supplementary feeding, coupled with scheduled follow-up checkups to ensure her full recovery.
With support from Action Against Hunger and EU Humanitarian Aid, NAPAD has been able to maintain a stock of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) in eight healthcare centers across Mandera East Sub- County to address cases of malnutrition like Faiza’s.
Binti Abubakar joyfully expressed her gratitude, saying, “Before Faiza always looked sad and without energy, but now she is happy, and she even goes out to play with other children.” “I am very grateful to NAPAD for their support, and I am very happy for my daughter.” She added.
Moreover, the Community Health Volunteers also trained the caregivers, especially mothers, about the Family MUAC approach. This is an approach where the mothers are trained and provided with the resources to screen for malnutrition in their children by measuring their MUAC. Involving mothers in the nutrition screening activities recognizes the fact that they are best placed to identify early signs of malnutrition and reinforces their role in protecting and promoting their child’s health.
Binti Abubakar said that from her learning from the community Health Volunteers, she tries to provide her daughter with appropriate complementary feeding using locally available and affordable nutritious foods, such as eggs, vegetables like spinach, and fruits. These efforts extend to her other children as well, promoting her household’s overall nutrition.
Mohamed Abdow Mohamed, a healthcare worker at BP1, reported that he had noticed a significant increase in the number of mothers seeking care and treatment for their children and a rise in follow-up sessions, highlighting the project’s positive impact.
Through this project, NAPAD has maintained its response to malnutrition among children in Mandera County and has screened 51,000 children under the age of five for malnutrition through Community Health Volunteers.
Despite some improvements attributed to the October -December 2023 rainy season, the lingering impacts of drought are still affecting livelihoods. Agropastoralists remain reluctant to invest back into agriculture after the previous 5 consecutive failed rainy seasons and flash flooding washed away their crops, and many of the households do not have the purchasing power to restock their livestock, whose products are a major source of nutrition, especially for children under the age of five. The Kenya IPC Acute Food Insecurity and Acute Malnutrition Analysis forecast that in January 2024 Mandera will likely remain in IPC AFI Phase 3, highlighting the ongoing need for support. NAPAD continues to seek your support to effectively reach the vulnerable children and mothers in the hard-to-reach areas with the highest needs in Mandera.