The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare says Nigeria must urgently move from fragmented nutrition programmes to coordinated, evidence-based actions to address widespread micronutrient deficiencies across the country.
Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate stated this while delivering the keynote address at the 2025 National Micronutrient Conference held in Abuja, with the theme “Strengthening Resilience Systems for Addressing Micronutrient Deficiencies in Nigeria.” He noted that deficiencies continue to affect women, children, adolescents and the elderly, undermining health, productivity and national development.
The Minister explained that the conference was convened to bring together government, development partners, civil society and the private sector to review data, align strategies and strengthen systems across health, food, education, social protection, water and sanitation.
According to him, the goal is to translate available evidence from national surveys into concrete actions that improve nutrition outcomes and break the cycle of malnutrition and poverty.
At the event, Prof. Pate inaugurated the National Micronutrient Deficiency Control (MNDC) Advisory Committee, a multi-stakeholder body tasked with guiding implementation, monitoring progress and advising government on priority actions.
He also launched several key nutrition policy documents, including the Multiple Micronutrient Supplementation (MMS) landscape analysis and roadmap, the Nutrition Emergency Strategy, and knowledge management and advocacy frameworks aimed at strengthening nutrition delivery nationwide.
Highlighting achievements and future plans, the Coordinating Minister said the Federal Government has distributed millions of micronutrient supplements to pregnant women, expanded nutrition services to more states, strengthened health worker capacity, and advanced food fortification initiatives in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture.
He expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for prioritising nutrition, and thanked development partners such as UNICEF, the Gates Foundation, civil society groups and other stakeholders for their continued support, while calling for increased funding and stronger collaboration at all levels of government to sustain progress.
