by Bonifacio Taban
BENTIU - The number of severely malnourished children in Unity State declined in September and October, a health worker in the region told The Niles.
However, Catrine Hoet, project coordinator for Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Bentiu, stressed that there was still no end in sight to the region’s food shortages.
“Numbers have decreased,” she said, “but at the intensive feeding centre we still see roughly 20 children per week.”
Heavy flooding in South Sudan’s northern state destroyed crops and left locals struggling to get enough food. MSF warned that although cases of extreme malnourishment are easing, the problem will continue as blocked roads impede the transport of food into the region.
The mobile feeding centre, which travels around Rubkotna and Bentiu treating malnourished children, has also noted a decline in severe cases, although it still admits between 40 and 60 young patients per week.
Infrastructure challenges, like poor road access and flooding, make it difficult to reach children at risk in local villages, Hoet said.
Malnutrition among children in Unity State has risen sharply as some parents cannot afford to feed their children properly, given a rise in living costs.
At the MSF centre in Benitu, doctors check children to establish if they can be treated at home or need to be admitted to the centre.
Veronica Nyanuba Joak, the mother of a one-year-old baby who has been treated by the doctors is grateful that her child received help in time. “I have seen lots of improvement since he was admitted at the feeding centre. My child can now go out to play,” said Joak.