The Gombe State Government has introduced a new food supplement that is made locally to help fight malnutrition in children. This step is part of an effort to improve the health of young children across the state.

At the launch of this program, Deputy Governor Dr. Manassah Daniel Jatau said the initiative is a strong and lasting way to handle the serious health problem of malnutrition. He explained that the state is working hard to improve children’s health through homegrown efforts.

He pointed out that Gombe has a child stunting rate of 50.6%, meaning that over half of the children are not growing properly for their age. Also, more than 94,000 children in the state suffer from severe malnutrition.

Dr. Jatau added that the food supplement has been tested and approved by NAFDAC (National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control). He said this approval is a big achievement in the state’s goal of developing human potential through better health and nutrition.

The Deputy Governor also mentioned that this program is a team effort. It involves the Ministries of Education, Science, and Technology, along with the Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRIN) program. They all worked together to make this plan successful.

More than 1,000 students from selected schools have already been trained to prepare healthy meals. This helps them learn important life skills and also support their communities with better food options.

In addition to training students, the program also empowers women. These women have been taught how to produce and distribute the food supplement. This not only helps improve children’s health but also gives women a way to earn income and support their families.

According to Dr. Aishatu Umar Maigari, the state’s commissioner for education, more than 200 women and 300 secondary school students have already been trained. These trained individuals will play a major role in helping to reduce and eventually end child malnutrition in Gombe State.