Matabeleland North province recorded the highest prevalence rate of stunting and underweight children in the recently conducted Zimbabwe Livelihoods Assessment Committee (ZimLAC) exercise.
The recently published ZimLAC report stated that the prevalence of stunting in Matabeleland North is 29.7%, while that of underweight children is 16.7%.
Stunting refers to the proportion of children with low height-for-age, while underweight refers to the proportion of children with low weight-for-age.
The national statistics for the prevalence rates of stunting and underweight are 23.2% and 9.2%, respectively.
Harare province recorded the highest prevalence for overweight at 5.0% and obesity at 7.7%, while the national prevalence for the two was 3.7% and 5.2%, respectively.
“The national average stunting level was 23.2%, classified as high. Matabeleland North had the highest stunting level at 29.7%, while Mashonaland West had the lowest at 19.2%. Matabeleland North also had the highest proportion of underweight children at 16.7%, the second-highest proportion of wasted children at 9.4%, and a high percentage of overweight at 4.7% and obese children at 6.1%. Harare province had the second-highest stunting level at 26.2%, along with the highest proportion of overweight (5%) and obese (7.7%) children,” the report read.
“Efforts to address childhood undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and overnutrition need to be integrated to achieve global nutrition targets. It is recommended that nutrition education be extended to all caregivers, not just mothers. There is a need to extend nutrition education to all caregivers, including baby minders and house helpers, especially in urban areas where caregivers tend to spend more time with children under the age of five years.”
The report further highlighted that “The proportion of children that attained minimum meal frequency was 34.1%, and 23.6% attained the minimum dietary diversity. Nationally, 52.4% of children had a high intake of sweet beverages, with Matabeleland South province having the highest proportion of children consuming sweet beverages at 61.8%. Nationally, 11.6% of children consume unhealthy foods, with Harare having the highest proportion at 15.8%.”
