SD loses over E780m due to under-nutrition

MBABANE  – Swaziland loses E783 million (US$92 million) annually due to the effects of under-nutrition.

This is the alarming conclusion of a new study titled ‘The Cost of Hunger in Africa (COHA)’. In the report it was stated that the amount lost by the country was as much as 3.1 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

 The COHA study was led by the National Children’s Coordination Unit in the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office (NCCU/DPMO) with support from the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Education and Training, Ministry of Finance, Swaziland National Nutrition Council (SNNC), the University of Swaziland and the World Food Programme Swaziland.
The report disclosed that under-nutrition was not just a health issue, but an economic concern locally.

Economy

Using data from 2009, the study measured the losses to the Swazi economy caused by child under-nutrition, in particular the effects of stunting or chronic malnutrition.
Stunting, or being short-for-age, is a result of a failure to receive adequate nutrients including proteins, vitamins and minerals, while in the womb or in the first years of life.  People affected by stunting were more likely, in later life, to be sickly, to perform poorly at school or drop out of classes, to be less productive at work and to die early.

The study also found that Swaziland could reduce losses associated with under-nutrition by E511 million (US$60 million) by 2025 if it reduced underweight rates to five per cent and stunting to 10 per cent.

“Treating diarrhoea, anemia, respiratory infections and other clinical conditions related to malnutrition cost Swaziland E61 million (US$6 million) in one year. Average schooling achievement for a person who was stunted as a child is 0.77 years lower than for a person who was never undernourished,” reads the report.

It was also stated that 12 per cent of all repetitions in schools were associated with stunting.

Additional

“This corresponds to 5 550 additional cases of grade repetition in which the education system and families incurred a cost of E6 million (US$ 701 000). Forty per cent of adults in Swaziland are stunted. This represents more than 270 000 people of working age who are not able to achieve their potential as a consequence of child under-nutrition,” it was noted.

The study also found that in manual activities, the associated loss was estimated at E126 million (US$ 14.8 million) of potential productivity not realised. In non-manual activities, where the losses were associated with lower schooling achievement, the economic losses are estimated at E 251 million (US$29.5 million) in a single year.

Support

The study was conducted by the Government of Swaziland with the support of the African Union Commission (AUC) including the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP). The study was funded by the Government of France, the African Development Bank and WFP.

The research was conducted in a total of 12 African countries, using a methodology originally applied in Latin America with the support of WFP. The 11 other countries were: Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Mauritania, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda.
*Additional reporting by WFP.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: