The Federal Government has entered into a proposed partnership with United States-based nonprofit Operation End Starvation to strengthen efforts to tackle child malnutrition, prevent starvation-related deaths and improve nutrition across Nigeria.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, disclosed this during a meeting with First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu, alongside representatives of the organisation and other agencies under the ministry.
According to a statement issued by the First Lady’s media aide, Busola Kukoyi, Pate said the government was committed to reducing acute child malnutrition through existing national programmes and partnerships.
He highlighted the National Community Food Bank Programme, launched in collaboration with the Office of the First Lady, as one of the initiatives supporting efforts to address hunger across the country’s six geopolitical zones.
The minister said Nigeria was working to reduce the estimated 6.4 million cases of acute child malnutrition while also improving nutritional support for pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers.
Chief Executive Officer of Operation End Starvation, Williams Holdsworth Moore, said the initiative was established to mobilise substantial funding to prevent child deaths caused by starvation.
He explained that the programme, supported by a macro grant from the United States government and contributions from international philanthropists, aims to direct more than $1 billion annually towards tackling child starvation.
Moore added that the organisation plans to invest $1 billion over the next two years to combat starvation across sub-Saharan Africa, with Nigeria identified as a primary country for the initiative.
He also disclosed that the United States Department of State had approved Nigeria’s inclusion in the programme’s outlook.
According to him, the organisation is seeking to work directly with the Federal Government to deliver measurable results, noting that discussions with Nigeria’s health officials had strengthened its confidence in the country’s capacity to address the challenge.
Responding, Tinubu commended Nigerian health professionals and public officials for their competence and commitment to national development.
She said her engagements with Pate, other health officials and the Ministry of Education had reinforced her confidence in the ability of public servants to implement effective programmes.
The First Lady also expressed optimism about ongoing reforms under President Bola Tinubu, saying improvements across government institutions could help move the country towards its development goals.
She assured the visiting delegation that any assistance provided through the proposed partnership would be put to effective use by Nigeria’s health professionals.
Operation End Starvation, an initiative of the Eleanor Crook Foundation, is a public-private partnership nonprofit focused on ending child malnutrition and starvation-related deaths across sub-Saharan Africa.
Nigeria is expected to serve as a key country for the programme over the next two years, with the initiative seeking to demonstrate the impact of large-scale investments delivered through direct partnerships with governments.
