Amman, Aug. 20 (BNA): At least 77 million, or 1 in 3, children in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have some form of malnutrition, according to the Nutrition Strategic Direction for MENA launched by UNICEF.
The new analysis finds a staggering 55 million children in the region are overweight or obese, with these forms of malnutrition on the rise among school-aged children in all 20 countries in the region. One in three school-aged children and adolescents are living with obesity.
According to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), a further 24 million children suffer from undernutrition, including stunting, wasting and thinness.
In the past 20 years, progress has been made to reduce the regional prevalence of stunting, or low height for age, which is an indicator of chronic undernutrition in children under 5 years of age.
“The Middle East and North Africa region is confronting an increasingly complex triple burden of malnutrition that is undermining the growth, development and future potential of its children,” said Adele Khodr, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa. “This is occurring against a complex backdrop of ongoing conflicts, political instability, climatic shocks, and rising food prices that together, deny children their right to nutritious food and limit humanitarian access to vulnerable communities.”
She added, “Many of the same challenges affect women of child-bearing age, with 9 million or 5% of women in MENA being underweight and an alarming 114 million or 68% living with obesity. In 17 countries in the region, the prevalence of obesity among adult women exceeds 60%, significantly higher than the global average of 45%.”
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