Thousands of children in Katsina State continue to battle acute malnutrition, with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), also known as Doctors Without Borders, reporting that it treated more than 87,000 children for the condition between January and August 2026.
Although the figure represents a decline from the more than 95,000 children treated during the same period in 2025, the international medical humanitarian organisation has warned that the scale of the crisis remains alarming, with nearly 15,500 children requiring hospitalisation for severe or complicated malnutrition this year.
MSF disclosed this in a statement issued to journalists on Wednesday by its Communication Officer, Abdul Kareem, stressing that sustained funding and adequate medical supplies were urgently needed to prevent avoidable child deaths.
The organisation, which operates its largest nutrition programme in Katsina, said the figures highlighted the persistent malnutrition crisis in northern Nigeria, where poverty, insecurity and limited access to essential services continue to leave children vulnerable.
MSF’s Medical Coordinator in Nigeria, Dr Raphael Kananga, said the reduction in cases was encouraging but insufficient to ease concerns, noting that the number of children treated remained higher than the level recorded two years ago.
Hospital admissions for severe or complicated malnutrition also declined slightly, from approximately 16,500 between January and August 2025 to nearly 15,500 during the corresponding period in 2026.
Despite the improvement, MSF warned that the situation remained critical, particularly because of the prevalence of kwashiorkor, a severe form of malnutrition associated with swelling of the body and skin lesions.
The organisation explained that kwashiorkor can be difficult for parents and caregivers to recognise, potentially delaying treatment and increasing the risk of complications.
To improve care, MSF established a specialised unit at its inpatient therapeutic feeding centre in Katsina for children suffering from the condition.
One beneficiary, Badiyya Shafi’u, described the difficulty she experienced in identifying her child’s illness before seeking medical attention. She said the child had made significant progress since receiving treatment, gradually regaining the strength to sit and stand independently after previously struggling to maintain an upright position.
Poverty, insecurity deepen malnutrition crisis
MSF attributed the persistent malnutrition burden in northern Nigeria to several interconnected factors, including poverty, inflation, insecurity, displacement, disease outbreaks and extreme weather conditions such as droughts and floods.
However, the organisation said improved security and better harvests in Katsina in 2025 had contributed to a modest improvement in the nutritional situation this year.
MSF’s Partnership Coordinator, Jean-Clément Ishimwe, said the return of some displaced residents to their communities had improved access to food and allowed more people to resume farming activities.
The organisation also acknowledged efforts by the Katsina State Government and humanitarian partners to expand nutrition services and improve access to treatment.
According to MSF, the state government established additional outpatient and inpatient treatment centres in 2026, while the organisation provided training for healthcare workers and technical support to strengthen service delivery.
Ishimwe said the Katsina State Government had committed N1 billion to tackling malnutrition, doubling its previous allocation, with particular emphasis on procuring ready-to-use therapeutic food for affected children.
He added that the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) had pledged to mobilise a similar amount through its Child Nutrition Fund.
MSF said the commitments could represent a significant step towards addressing the crisis if fully implemented and sustained.
Funding shortages threaten treatment gains
Despite the increased commitments, MSF warned that funding shortfalls and limited supplies of ready-to-use therapeutic food continued to hamper efforts to treat children with acute malnutrition.
The organisation said Katsina’s network of outpatient treatment centres had expanded from only a few facilities in 2021 to approximately 400, but cautioned that the growing network required adequate funding, supplies and personnel to meet demand.
It also identified reductions in aid funding by the United States and several European countries, including France, Germany and the United Kingdom, as additional challenges facing humanitarian nutrition programmes.
Citing figures from UNICEF, MSF said fewer than half of children with severe acute malnutrition worldwide received treatment, despite the availability of interventions that could prevent deaths and reduce the risk of long-term developmental complications.
The organisation also referenced concerns raised by the Nutrition Society of Nigeria that nearly two million Nigerian children were affected by severe acute malnutrition, with only about two in every 10 receiving treatment.
Across its nutrition programmes in seven northern states, MSF said it treated 57,999 children for malnutrition in inpatient facilities and another 225,778 through outpatient services between January and August 2026.
The organisation called on the Federal Government, state governments, international donors and humanitarian partners to increase and sustain funding for nutrition programmes to ensure that affected children receive timely and appropriate care.
It warned that without large-scale, sustained investment, malnutrition would continue to threaten the lives, health and development of thousands of children across northern Nigeria.
