Poor breastfeeding in Nigeria’s IDP camps worsening child malnutrition crisis

An advocacy group has raised an alarm over rising child malnutrition in Nigeria’s Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps, due to poor maternal nutrition and disrupted breastfeeding patterns.

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The group, Adinya Arise Foundation (AAF), issued the warning in a statement on Monday to mark the 2025 World Breastfeeding Week (WBW).

The group Executive Director, Mabel Ade, said breastfeeding is a critical survival tool for children in humanitarian settings and a key investment in national development.

Ms Ade warned that when breastfeeding is compromised, it becomes a national development issue.

She emphasised that a malnourished mother cannot breastfeed adequately.

WBW, marked annually from 1-7 of August, presents an opportunity to highlight the importance of this practice.

This year’s theme, “Prioritise Breastfeeding: Create Sustainable Support Systems,” emphasises the urgent need for consistent support at home, in communities, workplaces, and health facilities to help mothers breastfeed successfully.

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Conflict and hunger fueling crisis

IDP camps, which house Nigerians displaced by conflict, violence, and disasters, often lack adequate food, water, and healthcare.

As of July 2025, Nigeria is estimated to have more than three million forcibly displaced persons, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, also known as the UN Refugee Agency.

Compared to the previous year, a 2024 report by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) recorded a 24 per cent rise in child malnutrition in northeastern Nigeria, highlighting the impact of escalating conflict and climate change on food security.

Similarly, the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning said that as of August 2024, over 31.8 million Nigerians faced acute food insecurity, with women and children bearing the brunt.

Importance of breastfeeding

Breast milk is a natural and complete source of nutrition for infants. It contains antibodies that protect children from disease, support brain development, and reduce the risk of obesity later in life.

For women, it lowers the risk of breast and ovarian cancers as well as Type 2 diabetes.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) describes breastfeeding as a sustainable, cost-effective, climate-smart intervention that produces zero waste.

Despite its numerous benefits, breastfeeding remains poorly supported or widely misunderstood.

Urgent Intervention needed

Ms Ade said there is a need for intervention as poor nutrition in early childhood is linked to irreversible cognitive delays, poor academic performance, reduced economic productivity, and increased health care burdens.

And the implications are not limited to the children.

“For mothers, the consequences include weakened immunity, higher maternal mortality, and socio-economic vulnerability,” she said.

Additionally, she said, in Nigeria, where multiple humanitarian and socioeconomic crises converge, the act of breastfeeding has become both a survival strategy and a national development priority.

She noted that mothers who breastfeed exclusively for the first six months and continue alongside complementary feeding offer their children a healthy start in life.

She highlighted the UNICEF’s data that shows that only 29 per cent of Nigerian infants are exclusively breastfed, while the country holds the grim record of housing the highest number of malnourished children in Africa.

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“Behind this figure is a deeper crisis: the widespread malnutrition of mothers, particularly among pregnant and lactating women in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps,” Ms Ade said.

She noted that to improve breastfeeding outcomes and protect maternal nutrition in humanitarian and food-insecure areas, a multi-faceted approach is crucial.

This includes ensuring that exclusive breastfeeding and complementary feeding are prioritised in national and subnational nutrition and emergency response plans.