The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has raised alarm that more than 500,000 children could suffer from severe acute malnutrition across Sokoto, Kebbi, and Zamfara states in northwestern Nigeria.
According to findings from the 2025 Nutrition SMART Survey, UNICEF said the region is facing a serious nutrition crisis, with high levels of wasting and stunting among children under five years old.
The survey revealed that about 11% of children in Sokoto State are already wasted, while Kebbi recorded 11.5% and Zamfara 8.5%, indicating a widespread public health emergency affecting young children.
UNICEF officials explained that the situation was confirmed through additional IPC-Integrated Food Security Phase Classification analysis conducted in late 2025, which projected that over half a million children in the three states would require urgent treatment for severe wasting.
The agency warned that the combination of food insecurity, poverty, and limited access to healthcare continues to worsen child malnutrition in the region, calling for urgent and coordinated intervention by authorities and development partners to prevent further loss of life.
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