SOMALIA / NUTRITION (02:08)

7 December 2009

SOMALIA / NUTRITION (02:08)

UNICEF scales up its support to therapeutic feeding programs in Somalia where one in every five children is malnourished and one in 20 children suffers from severe malnutrition, a life-threatening condition if appropriate treatment is not provided. UNICEF

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Full Script

STORY: SOMALIA / NUTRITION 
SOURCE: UNICEF
TRT: 2.08
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: SOMALI / ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 19 AUGUST 2009, HARGEISA, SOMALIA

SHOTLIST:

1.Wide shot, women and children gathered at the outpatient therapeutic clinic 
2.Med shot, mother puts her baby on a scale
3.Close up, girl holding baby
4.Med shot, health worker hands plumpy nut to baby girl
5.Close up, baby girl holds plumpynut
6.Med shot, a health worker measures arm of baby
7.Med shot, mothers lined inside OTP
8.Med shot, mothers sitting on a bench inside OTP holding their babies
9.Close up, baby’s arm being measured
10.Med shot, health worker measures arm of child
11.Close up, baby Mahada
12.Med shot, Derer Muse holds her baby Mahada
13.SOUNDIBTE (Somali) Derer Muse, mother of seven:
“My husband had a stroke two years ago and he has been paralized since then. I earn money by washing people’s clothes but I can’t provide enough food with what I make. My family can only have one meal a day.”
14.Pan right, Wide shot, State House IDP camp in Hargeisa
15.Med shot, volunteer sits with mother of new born baby
16.Close up, baby
17.Med shot, UNICEF nutrition officer and NGO workers walk in State House IDP camp
18.Med shot, NGO staff walk into a hut
19.Med shot, UNICEF nutrition officer and NGO staff talk to a mother inside a hut
20.Close up, baby receives breastmilk
21.SOUNDBITE (English) Mostafa Jama, Executive Director, NGO Tabantabo:
“At the beginning it was difficult, even the team had difficulties to do home visiting. We help them and we support them. So we are very happy now when we evaluate, you can see how the mothers changed their behaviour and attitude about breastfeeding.”

FILE - FEBRUARY 2009, BOSSASO, NORTHEAST SOMALIA

22.Wide shot, IDPs lined up in Bossaso IDP camp to receive Plumydoz, northeast Somalia 
23.Med shot, staff puts Plumpydoz tubs into a bag 
24.Wide shot, women and children plumpydoz bags walk away
25.Med shot, health worker at Hargeisa OTP holds registration sheet and attends to mother and babies
26.Med shot, health worker checks on a baby

STORYLINE:

At the outpatient therapeutic clinic in Hargeisa, northwest Somalia, severely malnourished children received life-saving treatment and care.

Health workers at this clinic provide children with check-ups and medical treatment in addition to rations of Plumpy'nut- a special therapeutic food for the treatment of severe acute malnutrition. Progress of treatment is monitored once a week until the child is cured.

In Somalia, one in every five children is malnourished. One in 20 children suffers from severe malnutrition, a life-threatening condition if appropriate treatment is not provided.

In response to this alarming situation, UNICEF scaled up its support to therapeutic feeding programmes such as this from 235 facilities during 2008 to 380 by late 2009.

Mahada is six-months-old and severely malnourished. Her mother says that  the child has been suffering from vomiting, fever and diarrhea. Mahada is malnourished.

SOUNDIBTE (Somali) Derer Muse, mother of seven:
“My husband had a stroke two years ago and he has been paralyzed since then. I earn money by washing people’s clothes but I can’t provide enough food with what I make. My family can only have one meal a day.”

Conflict, food insecurity, poor living conditions, and lack of safe water are major causes of malnutrition among Somali children.

Extremely low levels of exclusive breast-feeding during the first six months of the infant’s life is also a key factor.

UNICEF is working with community-based partners to advocate for the life-saving effects of breastfeeding. Volunteers of the local NGO Tabantabo go house to house in displaced communities to talk to pregnant women and new mothers.

SOUNDBITE (English) Mostafa Jama, Executive Director, NGO Tabantabo: 
 “At the beginning it was difficult, even the team had difficulties to do home visiting. We help them and we support them. So we are very happy now when we evaluate, you can see how the mothers changed their behaviour and attitude about breastfeeding.”

Since December of last year, UNICEF and partners have also been distributing a new ready-to-use-food, Plumpydoz, which is rich with minerals and nutrients to prevent malnutrition among vulnerable children. More than 130,000 young children in Somalia benefited from this intervention during 2009.

Despite challenging security conditions in Somalia, UNICEF’s nutrition programme has greatly expanded to support prevention and treatment of malnutrition to help Somali children survive and develop.

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