IRIN News

"In parts of Chad acute malnutrition levels far exceed the international emergency threshold, according to a new study – fallout, partly, from crop failure hitting already fragile communities where access to basic health services is low and aid agencies are scarce.

"'We need to bridge humanitarian and development interventions, and integrate all sectors. Crises are increasingly frequent and complex and go beyond the national and regional level; they need to be dealt with accordingly,'" said Patricia Hoorelbeke, the West Africa representative of Action Against Hunger/ACF International. The standard responses, or those crafted for past crises, are not a solution, she commented.

"Almost one in five children measured by height, weight and arm circumference in November 2009 by Action Against Hunger, an NGO working in the region, were acutely malnourished."

"Sudden temperature change, the physiological demands on the digestive system of changing from a fodder to a grass diet, and water-borne diseases are always taxing for the cattle. 'Since the animals are already extremely weak, many are expected to die with the first rains,' said NGO Action Against Hunger’s (ACF) West Africa regional representative Patricia Hoorelbeke.

"Local authorities, the UN Refugee Agency, Médecins Sans Frontières - Holland and Action Against Hunger have supported the relocation of affected people using boats. Many other organizations such as Malteser International, Myanmar Red Cross Society and others are also supporting relief efforts, Hubin said."

"Aid groups in the north include the World Food Programme (WFP), which works through the local authorities, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), the International Committee of the Red Cross, Oxfam, Action Contre La Faim and Save the Children, which mainly work through local NGOs such as the Malian Red Cross."

"Now nutrition has become more integral to healthcare services in northern regions, said Raffaella Gentilini, nutrition coordinator at NGO Action Contre la Faim. In some parts of the north health workers were not monitoring the growth of babies, she pointed out. 'Now things are different. Health workers and community health volunteers know [malnutrition] is a disease and watch out for it.'"

"The PNN is raising nutrition on the government agenda and recently issued a nutrition strategy, but it does not have enough resources to put adequate staff in place in vulnerable areas, said ACF nutrition coordinator Raffaella Gentilini. 'Malnutrition is an example of just how fragile the overall health situation is here,' she said."

"Of 853 children in Abéché surveyed in June 2009 by the NGO Action Contre la Faim, 22.7 percent of under-five children were acutely malnourished and 6 percent had severe acute malnutrition, according to World Health Organization norms."

"Andrew Mitchell, of the French NGO Action Contre la Faim (Action Against Hunger), a member of the UN committee, pointed out that links between climate change and nutrition were not restricted to getting enough food. 'Malnutrition could potentially be the output of climate change’s impact on sectors such as health and water.'"