Treatment of Moderate Acute Malnutrition in children age 6 – 59 months and pregnant  lactating women in the prioritized provinces. Under-nutrition continues to be very high in Afghanistan, particularly among children under-5 and pregnant amp lactating women (PLW). Based on combined GAM rates amp screening proxy GAM rates ranges from 8% to 34%, with 18 out of 34 provinces gt15%. 

Combination of drought, Food insecurity, weak access to health services, Covid 19, Economic crisis, high morbidities are the drivers which further deteriorating the nutrition situation in the country. According to the recent 2021 Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), the food security situation in Afghanistan is dire, with more than half the population– 22.8 million people considered as food insecure. 

The Nutrition Cluster estimates at least 3.9 million people need acute malnutrition treatment services in 2021, including one million children under five with severe acute malnutrition (SAM), 2.2 million children under five with moderate acute malnutrition (MAM), and 0.7 million pregnant and lactating women (PLW) with acute malnutrition. 

Given the high needs resulting from the above circumstances, coupled with limited resources to address these needs in a comprehensive manner, the nutrition cluster in Afghanistan prioritized the most affected provinces considered to harbour the highest burden and or at risk of worsening malnutrition. These provinces are considered to be exposed to high malnutrition rates, food insecurity at IPC level 3 and above, low coverage of acute malnutrition treatment programmes, and high risk of being affected by drought. The nutrition cluster therefore plans to strengthen treatment interventions in these locations.

Therefore, as part of a broader nutrition cluster response, WFP in collaboration with UNICEF and in partnership with relevant BPHS and none-BPHS NGOs provides nutrition treatment services to moderately malnourished children and PLW to rehabilitate their nutritional status and prevent them from further deterioration to severe malnutrition. 

As the existing resources may not be sufficient to meet the increasing and emerging needs as a result of the drought, inadequate health services and economic crises, the funding from AHF 2021 1st standard allocation will be used to cover the needs in the prioritized locations.

This proposal focuses on the treatment of moderate acute malnutrition in children and PLW (Pregnant and Lactating Women) in the prioritized provinces using specialize nutritious foods (SNFs). With the US$ 3,587,735 from 2021 1st Standard Allocation, WFP will treat 59,527 MAM children aged 6-59 months using 535.7 MT of AchaMum @ 100 g/child/day and 20,270 pregnant and lactating women using 760.1. MT of Super Cereal (wheat soya blend with sugar @ 250 g/person/day in the 5 prioritized provinces (Samanagan, Badakhshan, Badghis, Parwan and Saripul provinces). 

As soon as the funding proposal is approved, WFP will take advantage of its Global Commodity Management facility for advance financing and start commodity procurement to reduce procurement lead time to ensure that children and PLW receive treatment in a timely manner. Additionally, possibly WFP will take commodity loans from existing stocks to cover the immediate needs in the AHF targeted locations, which upon arrival of AHF related commodity the loan will be repaid.