No fewer than 1,220 communities in Borno and Yobe are certified Open Defecation-Free (ODF) under the United Kingdom-funded Multi-sectoral Integrated Nutrition Action for Children, Women and Adolescents in Northeast Nigeria (MINA) project.
Mr Francis Butichi, UNICEF Chief of Field Office, Borno, disclosed this on Monday in Damaturu at a media dialogue and reporting challenge organised for journalists in North-east Nigeria.
The achievement, recorded between October 2023 and March 2026, is part of efforts to improve sanitation, prevent diseases and promote better nutrition and health outcomes among children, women and adolescents in the states.
Butichi said the ODF certification marked a significant milestone in implementing MINA, which adopted an integrated approach to addressing malnutrition and its underlying causes.
He said that poor sanitation, unsafe water and inadequate hygiene practices were among the factors contributing to malnutrition and preventable diseases among children.
According to him, the MINA project recognises that addressing acute malnutrition requires more than the provision of therapeutic foods, hence its integration of nutrition, maternal and child health, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), social behaviour change, gender-based violence prevention and child protection services.
He noted that the achievement reflected the importance of community participation and sustained behavioural change in promoting healthy living conditions.
Butichi said the project had also supported 14,117 vulnerable women with cash transfers in Yobe to improve their children’s dietary choices.
He added that 219,677 new admissions of children with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) were supported through outpatient and inpatient treatment.
According to him, more than 1.6 million children aged six to 59 months received vitamin A supplementation, while 1,019,661 children below 24 months received measles-1 vaccination through routine immunisation in the two states.
The UNICEF official said the interventions had contributed to improved nutrition, healthcare, sanitation and protection outcomes for vulnerable children and women.
He described the media reporting challenge as an advocacy platform to sustain the gains recorded under the MINA project and encourage policymakers to institutionalise its successful interventions.
“As MINA gradually comes to an end as a project, its legacy must be sustained through stronger community ownership, behavioural change and government commitment,” he said.
He particularly highlighted the growing commitment of state governments to the Child Nutrition Fund for the procurement of ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTF), describing it as an important step towards sustaining life-saving nutrition services.
Butichi urged journalists to report not only the successes of the programme but also existing gaps requiring government and stakeholder intervention.
He also called on media practitioners visiting health facilities to uphold ethical reporting standards and use only dignifying images of children affected by acute malnutrition.
He cited the recovery of Maryam, a child who lost her mother at 40 days old in Yobe and subsequently developed severe malnutrition while in the care of her grandmother, as an example of the programme’s impact.
According to him, Maryam was admitted to the Yobe State Specialist Hospital, Damaturu, where she received treatment through UNICEF and its implementing partner, Plan International.
He said the provision of special milk and ready-to-use therapeutic food through the MINA project helped the child regain weight and recover fully before her discharge.
Butichi urged journalists to highlight stories such as Maryam’s while examining the interventions, community structures and partnerships responsible for such recoveries.
He reaffirmed UNICEF’s commitment to sustained collaboration with the media on development reporting and solution journalism.
The MINA project is funded by the UK through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and implemented across 24 Local Government Areas in Borno and Yobe states.
