By Emmanuel Uffot
The Aliko Dangote Foundation Integrated Nutrition, ADFIN, Project, an arm of Aliko Dangote Foundation of Dangote Group, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding , MoU, with the Abdullahi Gandunje , led Kano state government ‘’to check the prevalence of malnutrition specifically among children in the north west state.
The event took place at the ECA Unit of Abdullahi Wase Hospital on Wednesday, August 31, 2022. Speaking at the official signing of the MoU document, Zouera Yousufou, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, CEO,, Aliko Dangote Foundation said ‘’the Foundation is worried about the prevalence of malnutrition specifically among children in the state, hence the decision to intervene to curb the worrisome trend’’.
According to her, the Foundation , had already done some remarkable intervention in that direction through its support in the feedig programme by Hijiya Mariya Dantata, where about 30,000 meals are distributed daily. She also stated that the Foundation’s commitment towards malnutrition is in the distribution of 20,000 loaves of bread in the ancient town of Kano and Lagos, the nation’s commercial nerve centre on a daily basis .
She further explained that part of the reason for signing of the MoU, with the Kano state government was the commitment of over N50million to procure ready to use Therapeutic Food, RUTF, for treatment of children with Severe Acute Malnutrition , SAM, in the state. The Aliko Dangote Foundation, Managing Director /CEO, had said that RUTF, will be produced by a company based in Kano , noting that the Foundation will ensure that the intervention measure reach each household of the vulnerable children.
She noted that the primary focus of the ADFIN Project, ‘’ wraps around interventions in health, education, and empowerment’’. Based on this, she disclosed that that the Foundation are now making unprecedented investment to improve nutrition in the country. Hear the Aliko Dangote Foundation boss: We intend to treat children with SAM, using RUTF, which was produced right here by a Kano based Food company. She was emphatic that the Foundation will reach its household of the children with food nutrition.
As a prelude to achieving the goal, she revealed that the Aliko Dangote Foundation, has trained the first set of Cohort Community Active mobilisers, CAM, who are expected to help identify the vulnerable children in the state and refer them for treatment.
According to her, the ADFIN, project, was designed to start in Kano state with plans to extend to extend to the 13 northern states. The multi-million naira project was to take off in 13 out of the 44 Local Government Areas, LGAs, of the state. Given insider information of the execution of the ADFIN, she disclosed that they need ‘’to end this scourge malnutrition and the signing of the MoU takes the Foundation closes to achieving its goal.
Giving the cost implication for the ADFIN project, may have informed why the Management of the Foundation are soliciting for other partners to join hands with them to achieve a robust and sustainable solutions to curbing malnutrition in Kano state and other parts of the northern region.
Ibrahim Tsanyawa, Kano state Commissioner of Health, who could not hide his feelings had extolled Aliko Dangote, a multi-billionare , business mogul , for setting up the Dangote Foundation which had been used over the years in investing heavily towards improving ‘’the well-being of people of the state. He was said to have assured the Management of the Dangote Foundation that the Kano state government commitment and readiness to support towards achieving the desired goal of reversing the nutrition indices of the state will never change.
Note that tha Aliko Dangote Foundation, promoted by Aliko angote, President Dangote Group, is a private charitable Organisation incorporated in 1994, with the mission ‘’to enhance opportunities for social change through investments that will improve the nation’s health sector and people wellbeing and promote quality education as well as broaden economic empowerment opportunities’’.
Going by the involvement of the the Aliko Dangote Foundation in intervention in health , education and empowerment , across the states of the Federation, may have informed why people believe ‘’it has become the largest private charitable Organisation in the sub-Saharan Africa.
