The COVID-19 pandemic has constituted a strong bottle neck for LGs in Bauchi State in sustaining funding for regular supply of Ready to Use Therapeutic Food, RUTF, to Community-based Management of Acute Malnutrition, CMAM centers in the state.
Although the state government was able to procure the RUTF commodity through UNICEF, LGs’ inability to pick their allocations due to ‘shortfall of cash flow into their coffers’ have posed a serious problem for patients and their caregivers.
Our correspondent reports that on average, it took authorities of some LGAs in Bauchi State three weeks before they were able to release funds required to transport RUTF from the state capital to designated centres treating the menace.
Many LG officials who spoke with WikkiTimes said since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic attention of the State and LGAs have shifted to fighting the pandemic.
For instance, authorities in Darazo local government abandoned their allocation for about 3 weeks in the State capital while patients continue to languish in misery and pains.
The officials of the LGA lamented that the stockout of the commodity has serious implications on the recovery process of patients who are already placed on treatment.
Mustapha Yakubu, Senior Nutrition Officer, Aishatu Isah Yuguda Under Five Clinic, CMAN Centre, Darazo said, “RUTF stock out has adverse effects on treatment and recovery of malnourished children. Whenever we have stock out, we have to start the treatment fresh. This is a serious setback to the stable growth of the children and a burden on our work.
“The monthly RUTF supply Darazo LG received from January to date is not enough to cater for malnourished children on admission not to talk of new admissions. “Every week the center records at least 50-60 new patients.
“Darazo gets70 RUTF cartoons per month from January 2020 to date. Each carton contains 150 sachets. This is grossly inadequate compared to the number of patients on admission and the increasing daily demand except if you will give 14 sachets to every admitted child.
“This is contrary to the method of RUTF administration on malnourished children. It is not like that because some will get sachets ranging from 18, 20, 25 and others require up to 30 sachets. Every child is given RUTF supplement according to his weight,” Darazo Senior Nutrition Officer explains.
The nutrition officer said no explanation was given to juxtapose why the shortage in supply.
“The Darazo CMAN center has a monthly average consumption level of 25 cartons of RUTF”, he said.
WikkiTimes Investigation revealed that the local government requires about 120 cartoons of malnutrition therapy every month to care for the number of children approaching the center to get healing from the growth impairment disease.
Although in Tafawa Balewa there is a relatively stable monthly supply of the RUTF, investigation revealed that the LGA has made a deliberate effort to teach mothers on how to produce locally made RUTF, known as “Tom Brown”, to keep their malnourished children in better shape.
The effort this medium learnt was a local solution to the persistent shortage of the RUTF “since they experienced shortage in the monthly supply towards the end of last year”, said Mallam Idris Adamu Shall, nutrition officer of the State.
“Presently, Tafawa Balewa local government has a monthly supply of 100 cartoons. This is grossly inadequate enough to cater for the clients on ground at the local governments CMAN center as well as new clients.
“The Bununu CMAN center of Tafawa Balewa local government has a weekly record of 125 new malnourished children admission,” the LGs’ Nutrition Officer explains.
“But Tom Brown cannot prevent the local government from experiencing short supply normally witnessed at the beginning of every month and the first week of the preceding month.
“Tafawa Balewa received 100 cartoons of RUTF monthly and this is short of the needed supply to take care of malnourished children in the LG and those coming from other LGs and neighbouring Plateau State”, buttressed Mallam Idris Adamu Shall.
The Nutrition Officer told this medium that the number of clients coming to patronise the center has increased exponentially, “since they started running the center in 2018, because neighboring local governments of Plateau State are also beneficiaries.”
Malam Idris said, “at the moment, we have about 1500 clients coming to this CMAN center to collect RUTF for their malnourished children drawn from Alkaleri, Bauchi, Dass, all LGs of Bauchi State; others come from Mangu, Dangi and Wase, from Plateau State.”
This is also what is obtainable in Darazo local government. Mustapha Yakubu, Senior Nutrition Officer, Aishatu Isah Yuguda Under Five Clinic, CMAN Centre, Darazo said only 60 percent of their clients hailed from Darazo the remaining 40 percent hailed from neighboring local governments of Bauchi State and two others from Jigawa State and Gombe States.
Tears, Casualties as Stockout in LGs Linger
As shortages of the Ready to Use Therapeutic Food lingers, many children across some LGAs in the state continue to risk perishing.
For instance, in Darazo “three months without a single sachet of RUTF in stock at its CMAN center has resulted in the death of four children”, lamented Mustapha Yakubu, the LG’s nutrition officer.
He said “stock out causes decline in the number of new admissions. Over the three months that the center did not receive supply of the supplement, it recorded over 200 defaulters.
“They bombarded us with phone calls asking whether the supplement is available and the response remains no. “This makes them lose confidence in the treatment and leave the programme without completing the rounds of treatment they are supposed to have undergone.
He said the situation has resulted in either children dying getting permanent illnesses.
“And Darazo recorded four deaths as the result of malnutrition complications owing to stock out of RUTF in the local government,” he added.
WikkiTimes reports that many mothers of malnourished children continue to shed tears for not getting RUTF in view of the worsening conditions of their malnourished children.
Some of the women who spoke to this medium expressed their disappointment for trekking long distances but could not get the commodity.
Dija Adamu could not hide her frustration upon trekking long distance in order to access RUTF at Bununu CMAM centre but ended up getting frustrated when she was told that the commodity was not available for her child.
Although LG officials have conceded that the commodity was in short supply at the LGA levels, they argued lack of funds at the local level was the major problem standing against sustained fight against the menace.
“I know that both State and local governments procured the RUTF with support and collaboration with donors and philanthropists. But probably because of inadequate funds at the LG level and corruption endemic in Nigeria, malnutrition treatment centers at various local governments don’t have access to sustained monthly supply of the therapy”, insists Idris Shall.
