Oyo Deepens Action on Nutrition as South-West States, UNICEF Strengthen Collaboration

The Oyo State Government has intensified its drive to combat malnutrition as it hosted stakeholders from across the South-West at a high-level workshop on integrated multisectoral nutrition interventions and the N774 Initiative.

The engagement, held at Kakanfo Inn & Conference Centre in Ibadan, brought together policymakers, permanent secretaries, directors, and development partners, including UNICEF.

The workshop highlighted Oyo State’s recent progress in nutrition, including its achievement in reducing stunting rates from 37% in 2018 to 23.4% in 2024. Officials attributed this improvement to strengthened governance structures, expanded multisectoral coordination, and sustained investment under the administration of Governor Seyi Makinde.

In his keynote address, the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning emphasized that nutrition remains a central pillar of human capital development.

He explained that malnutrition, expressed through stunting, wasting, micronutrient deficiencies, and rising overweight, remains a major obstacle to sustainable development in the region.

He reiterated that Oyo State now treats nutrition as a multisectoral emergency, noting that the State Committee on Food and Nutrition (SCFN) has been instrumental in coordinating efforts across health, agriculture, education, WASH, and social protection sectors.

He also highlighted the newly developed five-year Multisectoral Plan of Action for Food and Nutrition (OYMPFAN 2025–2029), which provides a roadmap for harmonized nutrition programming statewide.

To accelerate impact at the grassroots, Oyo state, working with UNICEF and the Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRiN) Project, has inaugurated Local Government Committees on Food and Nutrition across all 33 LGAs.

The Commissioner also disclosed that Oyo became the first South-West state to commit N232.5 million as counterpart funding for the Child Nutrition Fund (CNF), supporting the procurement of essential nutrition commodities for vulnerable women and children.

Earlier in his welcome address, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning described the workshop as a strategic convergence for all six South-West states, Lagos, Ogun, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, and Oyo, to strengthen peer learning and develop actionable implementation plans for the N774 Initiative.

He commended UNICEF for its sustained technical leadership and urged participants to engage rigorously, noting that outcomes from the workshop would directly feed into policy and budget cycles.

UNICEF Programme Manager, Muhammed Okorie, commended the regional collaboration, noting that the engagement directly supports the federal Nutrition 774 Initiative, which seeks to address malnutrition across all 774 local government areas in Nigeria.

He explained that the initiative represents a broader high-level alignment aimed at mobilizing local, state, and federal actors to prioritize nutrition services for pregnant women, adolescent girls, and children under five.

Okorie emphasized that these efforts are essential given the persistent challenge of malnutrition in the region, which continues to contribute to significant childhood stunting and long-term developmental limitations.

He added that sustained political will and financing are crucial for reversing the trend.

The workshop is expected to produce state-specific operationalisation plans, enhance inter-state coordination, and strengthen financing strategies for nutrition interventions. Stakeholders expressed confidence that the renewed momentum will translate into improved nutrition outcomes for women, children, and vulnerable groups across South-West Nigeria.

The Oyo State Government reiterated its commitment to maintaining steady nutrition financing and working collaboratively with all partners to end malnutrition in the state and region.