By Mercy Aikoye, Abuja
The Abia State Government has taken a significant step towards improving nutrition in the state with the inauguration of the Abia State Council on Nutrition. The council will implement the Nutrition 774 (N-774) Initiative of the Federal Government, aimed at improving nutritional outcomes across the state’s 17 local government areas.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Health, Mrs. Uju Rochas-Anwukah, emphasized that malnutrition is a global menace that requires collective efforts to combat. “Today, one in every three Nigerian children under five is stunted. Every year, malnutrition contributes to nearly half of under-five deaths,” she said.
The N-774 Initiative is a government-led, community-based, multi-sectoral initiative established to improve nutritional outcomes across the 774 LGAs in the country. Mrs. Rochas-Anwukah highlighted that the initiative is anchored on three principles: political will at subnational level, multi-sectoral collaboration, and accountability and financing.
Governor Alex Otti described the initiative as a welcomed development, saying, “Clearly, when you talk about nutrition, the initiative is very good and we welcome it.” He emphasized that the state’s investments in healthcare and education would complement the initiative’s goals.
The Governor highlighted that the state has reserved 15% of its budget for healthcare and 20% for education, totaling 35% of the state’s budget.
“So, when you see us fixing roads in Aba, in Umuahia, cleaning up the environment, ensuring that the investments we are making in healthcare, you will find that if people are well fed, they will probably not be sick,” he said.
Governor Otti urged the council to ensure effective coordination and performance tracking, noting that such an attitude is a direct intervention. “But, we have not been deliberate in monitoring the numbers. And now that you have come here, if there’s nothing that you have succeeded in doing, it’s to now get us to be deliberate in monitoring our numbers on nutrition,” he stated.
The Abia State Council on Nutrition will provide overall leadership, policy direction, coordination, and oversight for the effective implementation and sustainability of nutritional activities across the state. The council’s membership includes commissioners from various line ministries.
Mrs. Rochas-Anwukah commended Governor Otti for taking the lead in the series of expected inaugurations. She urged the state to integrate nutrition into its agricultural plans, education systems, health programs, and social protection schemes, saying, “Let us make nutrition financing predictable and sustainable—not just donor-driven, but government-owned and government-led.”
