Abuja: Stakeholders in nutrition have called for increased domestic financing, improved accountability, and wider access to Multiple Micronutrient Supplements (MMS) to accelerate efforts towards reducing the high burden of anaemia in Nigeria. They made the call at a webinar organised by Civil Society Scaling-Up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN), with the theme, ‘Investing in anaemia prevention: financing healthier mothers, stronger families, and a more productive Nigeria.’
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Prosper Dakura, Nutrition Manager, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Nigeria, stated that anaemia remains a major public health challenge affecting women, children, and men, with multiple nutritional and non-nutritional causes. Dakura highlighted data from the 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey, which showed that 58 percent of women of reproductive age and 68 percent of pregnant women in Nigeria were anaemic. He emphasised that anaemia is not solely caused by iron deficiency, noting that deficiencies in folate, vitamin B12, vitamin A, and zinc, as well as factors like malaria, helminth infections, and genetic blood disorders such as sickle cell, also contribute.
Dakura mentioned that Nigeria has several policies addressing anaemia, including the National Policy on Food and Nutrition, National Strategic Plan of Action for Nutrition, and National Guidelines for the Control of Micronutrient Deficiencies. The government has approved the transition from Iron-Folic Acid (IFA) supplementation to MMS for pregnant women. He stressed that tackling anaemia requires a multi-sectoral approach involving dietary diversification, food fortification, MMS for pregnant women, IFA for adolescent girls, malaria prevention, deworming, and improved water, sanitation, and hygiene.
Prof. Kola Anigo, National Coordinator, Scaling Up Nutrition Academic-Research Network (ARN-SUNN), identified four major evidence gaps affecting anaemia prevention, which include financing information, accountability and verification, costing and investment, and financing-to-results. Anigo pointed out that nutrition funding is often embedded in broader health budgets, making it difficult to determine the exact funds allocated, released, and spent on anaemia prevention. He noted that only 42.3 percent of programme officers reported access to financial or audit reports on Child Nutrition Fund (CNF) expenditure. Anigo called for better evidence linking investments to commodity procurement, coverage, adherence, and measurable maternal and anaemia outcomes.
Mrs. Olufunmilola Adebiyi, Director and Head of Nutrition, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, mentioned ongoing efforts to integrate MMS into state annual operational plans and matching-fund mechanisms. The ministry is using prioritisation tools to identify high-burden Local Government Areas and direct resources to areas with greater need, while strengthening delivery through routine primary healthcare and antenatal care.
Sunday Okoronkwo, Executive Secretary, CS-SUNN, said the webinar had exposed gaps in financing and procurement. He noted that Nigeria needs close to six million bottles of MMS to meet identified gaps for the year and beyond. Okoronkwo highlighted that the lack of prioritisation of MMS procurement in many state budgets underscores the urgency of the discussion. He urged government actors to implement the recommendations while CSOs provide technical support, stressing the need to translate nutrition funding into actual procurement and availability of commodities. Okoronkwo emphasised that stakeholders must continually question whether Nigeria is investing enough, investing sustainably, and translating investments into results for women, children, families, and communities.
Participants at the webinar shared their experiences with MMS during pregnancy, highlighting challenges with availability. They reported that MMS helped them stay active, experience less fatigue, and feel more energised throughout pregnancy compared to previous pregnancies when they took routine IFA supplements. The participants called for increased production, wider distribution, and targeted outreach to women missing out on facility-based antenatal care, urging stakeholders to boost MMS availability in pharmacies and primary healthcare centers.