Malnutrition on the Rise in Zimbabwe as El Niño Takes its Toll

NEW YORK (March 15, 2016) – Zimbabwe is facing its worst malnutrition rates in 15 years, as nearly 33,000 children are in urgent need of treatment for severe acute malnutrition. As an El Niño-induced drought sweeps across large parts of the country, the number of hungry families in the country has doubled in the past eight months.

“Children are enduring the greatest force of this crisis,” said acting UNICEF Representative Dr. Jane Muita. “We have not seen these levels of malnutrition in more than 15 years and although the Government and its partners are doing their best to assist, more needs to be done to prevent this crisis from spiraling out of control.” 

UNICEF said that two consecutive seasons of failed rains have diminished food harvests and reserves, increased hunger and malnutrition, dried up water sources and decimated livestock.

According to the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Survey released last month, nearly 2.8 million people in rural Zimbabwe (30 percent of the rural population) will require food assistance, of which 1.4 million are children aged 18 years and below. The impact of the drought on households, according to the survey, is particularly stark and children are being adversely affected the following ways:

• The proportion of hungry households had more than doubled from 16 percent in May 2015 to 37 percent in January 2016;
• Overall, 2.1 percent of children under-five years have severe acute malnutrition. This is slightly higher than the international threshold of 2 percent required for an emergency response. Global acute malnutrition has hit 5.7 percent, the highest ever reached in the last 15 years;
• The majority of children with severe acute malnutrition are aged between 1-2 years. This is also the age group where edema (swelling of arms and feet as a result of excess water retention) is most prevalent;
• On average, 35 percent of households have inadequate water supply for domestic use. Water scarcity is forcing children, especially girls, to walk even longer distances in search of water. Inadequate water is also exposing children to higher risks of diarrhea, typhoid and other water-borne disease including cholera.

UNICEF is requesting $21 million to meet the humanitarian needs of children in Zimbabwe in 2016. Without additional funding, UNICEF will be unable to continue to respond to the humanitarian needs of children in nutrition, health, water and sanitation, HIV and AIDS, education and child protection services. Interventions will focus on supporting vulnerable and disadvantaged women and children to withstand, adapt to and recover from this crisis.

About UNICEF
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) works in more than 190 countries and territories to put children first. UNICEF has helped save more children’s lives than any other humanitarian organization, by providing health care and immunizations, clean water and sanitation, nutrition, education, emergency relief and more. The U.S. Fund for UNICEF supports UNICEF's work through fundraising, advocacy and education in the United States. Together, we are working toward the day when no children die from preventable causes and every child has a safe and healthy childhood. For more information, visit www.unicefusa.org.

For more information, contact:
Sophie Aziakou, U.S. Fund for UNICEF, 917.720.1397, saziakou@unicefusa.org