Every week at the Integrated Management of Acute Malnutrition (IMAM) Centre in Darazo LGA Primary Health Centre, mothers line up early in the morning, clutching clinic cards, waiting for the small silver sachets of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF). For many, those sachets mean the difference between life and death.
Fatima Adamu, 29, from the Tsakani community, says RUTF pulled her 1-year-old daughter Amina back from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) after weaning left the toddler refusing all food.
“My daughter is 1 year old. When I brought her here, she was very weak and light. Since I started giving her RUTF, she is regaining weight and increasing in body size. Her weight is far better now,” Fatima said at Darazo Primary Health Centre during her fourth weekly collection.
“I thank the Bauchi State Government, Child Nutrition Fund, UNICEF and other donors. But I am calling on authorities to sustain RUTF supply, so other children can be saved,” she added.
Her story mirrors dozens more. Suwaiba Ahmadu trekked from the Zorro community a month ago, convinced that her 2-year-old daughter Rabi would not survive. Clinic records show Rabi weighed 6.2kg and was severely dehydrated on admission. After eight weeks on RUTF, the child now weighs 8.4kg and plays actively.
Abdullahi Bello, Nutrition Focal Person for Darazo LGA, said the shift from the old Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) model to IMAM has increased access and community trust. The centre now treats 300 to 400 malnourished children weekly, up from previous figures.
“We received 200 cartons of RUTF, with 150 sachets per carton. Each child is placed on 14 sachets per week, alongside nutrition education for mothers,” Bello explained.
But he warned that progress remains fragile without consistent supply. “The pre-RUTF era was very bad. Stockouts drove malnutrition rates up across the community and state. Before RUTF, carers relied on ‘Tom Brown’, but economic hardship made even that scarce,” he said.
Health workers say early detection and RUTF have cut mortality rates and improved recovery for children under five, especially in rural areas where nutrient-rich foods are limited and expensive.
For 7-month-old Na’ima of Anguwan Zarmai, who rejected breast milk and formula, 14 sachets weekly raised her weight from 3.5kg to 4kg in one month. First-time mother Zainab Sanusi, 26, brought in her 5-month-old after illness made breastfeeding difficult.
Fatima Yusuf, mother of Na’ima, now urges other mothers not to delay seeking care at the first sign of malnutrition. She joined others in appealing to the Bauchi State Government, Child Nutrition Fund (CNF), and UNICEF to prevent stockouts.
UNICEF says severe acute malnutrition is worsening in Bauchi due to the rising cost of living and climate pressures across the northeast.
“With the increase in cost of living in Nigeria, and generally in the North East, particularly in Bauchi State, we have seen families unable to provide adequate food for children, which is leading to severe acute malnutrition,” UNICEF Nutrition Specialist Philomena Irene said.
Irene disclosed that through the Child Nutrition Fund, UNICEF is working with the state government to secure funding for 2026.
She commended Governor Bala Mohammed for approving N500 million for CNF in 2026, adding that UNICEF is collaborating with the State Primary Healthcare Development Board and Ministry of Finance to ensure the release before mid-year for more ready-to-use therapeutic food.
Beyond emergency treatment, UNICEF said it is pursuing nutrition-sensitive interventions with the Bauchi State Agricultural Development Agency to provide climate-sensitive seedlings and fast-maturing economic crops.
It is also partnering with RUWASSA to expand access to clean water and reduce acute watery diarrhoea among children under five.
“So far, it is a work in progress. There is still more to be done because the level of malnutrition keeps increasing every day, coupled with climate factors and drought that is encroaching,” Irene noted.
For Amina, Na’ima, Rabi and hundreds more in Darazo, those RUTF sachets mean more than calories. They mean a second chance at childhood, if the supply holds.
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