Civil Society Scaling-Up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN) has urged local governments across Lagos State to prioritise nutrition in their budgets, warning that the fight against child malnutrition could suffer without dedicated funding at the grassroots.
The organisation made the call during an advocacy visit to Epe Local Government Area, where it appealed to the council leadership to create specific budget lines for nutrition across relevant departments.
Senior Programme Officer of CS-SUNN, Kunle Ishola, said nutrition had historically received more attention at the national and state levels, while local governments often carried out nutrition-related activities without dedicated funding or proper coordination.
He stressed that every relevant department should budget for nutrition to ensure interventions are coordinated, measurable and sustainable.
Ishola also called for regular meetings of the Local Government Committee on Food and Nutrition (LGCFN), involving sectors such as health, agriculture, education, water and sanitation, and women affairs.
According to him, malnutrition cannot be addressed by the health sector alone, as its causes cut across several areas. He urged local government authorities to adopt a multisectoral approach to improve nutrition outcomes and protect children from malnutrition.
