Stakeholders Bemoan Poor Vitamin-A Supplementation Coverage in Nigeria

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

Stakeholders at the opening of a two-day Round Table Dialogue in Abuja, the nation’s capital yesterday expressed concerns over the poor coverage of the Vitamin A Supplementation (VAS) programme in Nigeria.

They noted the development remained a great threat to the health of children, between the age of six and 59 months.

The event was organised by the Nutrition International, and UNICEF, in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and had as participants, executive secretaries of health in local government councils.

The Country Director, Nutritional International, Dr. Osita Okonkwo, on the occasion said Vitamin A Supplementation plays a crucial role in supporting the growth and development of young children.

He noted that it is essential for immune function, vision, and cell growth and that its deficiency could lead to severe health issues such as increased susceptibility to infections, vision problems, and even blindness.

Okonkwo added that regular vitamin A supplementation, particularly for children between the age of six to 59 months, has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of severe illness and death from common childhood infections like measles and diarrhea.

The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Mr. Daju Kachollom, noted the challenges affecting the programme and advocated continued investments in healthcare infrastructure, access, and education to further reduce child and maternal mortality rates in Nigeria.

He said the Nigerian government has recognised the importance of routine VAS in its National Health Policy, to enhance coverage and ensure that children receive regular doses of vitamin A as integrated with other health services such as Immunization campaigns, Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health (MNCH) Weeks, and Routine health check-ups for children.

He said: “Through these initiatives, the government can leverage existing infrastructure and increase the likelihood that children receive their supplements.

“The importance of partnership and collaborative efforts in addressing nutrition-related challenges and achieving sustainable improvements in public health cannot be overemphasized.

“The Nigerian government deeply appreciates the continued support and partnership of organizations such as Nutrition International in advancing efforts to improve the health and well-being of its citizens, particularly in the area of Vitamin A Supplementation (VAS).

“The government remains committed to working closely with partners to strengthen the health system, increase the coverage of essential health interventions, and ensure that all children, regardless of their location, have access to life-saving nutrition commodities.”

The Director, Child Survival Portfolio for Africa in Nutritional International, Banda Ndiaye, noted that giving vitamin A supplement to children every six months will contribute to reduce the occurrence of diarrhea by 15%, incidence of measles by 50% and also the reduction of all cases of child mortality by 12%.

He also noted that it costs less than one dollar to cover a child in a year.

He noted that Nutrition International has been working with the Nigerian government and other stakeholders since 2007 to implement VAS and other nutrition interventions.

He said: “Many countries include Vitamin A supplements in their national health policies, often giving them to children during routine health visits or immunizations.

“Currently, the government of Nigeria uses the biannual Maternal Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW) to deliver essential services to families including vitamin A supplements for Children between 6 and 59 months of age and to increase demand for maternal and child health services.

“Despite this, coverage remains poor. Some children are missed due to several reasons ranging from ineligibility to non-availability of the child during campaigns.

“Other challenges include campaign fatigue of health workers, scarce resources, poor planning, poor community mobilization strategies and low political will especially at the sub national level. 

“Consequently, the Nutrition Department of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in collaboration with Nutrition International (NI) has organized this dialogue to identify challenges and opportunities to achieve high VAS coverage in Nigeria.

“We will share and discuss learnings from countries delivering VAS through routine health systems, review mechanism to improve VAS coverage in Nigeria and develop strategic national plan/process for efficient transition of VAS from campaign to routine through the Primary Health Care systems in Nigeria.”

A Director in the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, who is also the head of the nutrition department, Ladidu Kuluwa Bako-Aiyegbusi noted that the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week, is held May, June, November, and December every year.

She said: “Now looking at the statistics, we realize that during the campaign, we usually have above 90% coverage.

“For example, in 2023, we were able to administer vitamin A supplementation to about 30 million children. In 2024, over 40 million children were.

“When we look at the routine coverage, it’s very low, it’s less than 10%. And that is where the concern is.”