Katsina to Establish Nutrition Food Factory, Hire 2,300 Health Workers to Tackle Child Malnutrition
The Katsina State Government plans to build a local factory for therapeutic food production to fight malnutrition.
Governor Dikko Radda also announced plans to hire over 2,300 health workers statewide.
The Katsina State Government has announced plans to establish a local factory for the production of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) and employ more than 2,300 health workers as part of a new strategy to address child malnutrition across the state.
According to reports, the move is part of a broader plan by the administration of Governor Dikko Radda to promote sustainable, home-grown solutions to the region’s nutrition crisis through local production, social protection, and healthcare reform.
Governor Radda disclosed the plan on Thursday during the High-Level Conference on Mobilising Against Malnutrition in Northwest Nigeria held in Abuja. Reports say the initiative was influenced by a recent study by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), which revealed the alarming rate of child malnutrition in Katsina and other states in the northwest.
Following the report, the state government reportedly set up a multi-sectoral committee to identify the main causes of malnutrition, and its findings have now shaped the state’s long-term nutrition strategy.
Nutrition and healthcare investment
According to the governor, a key part of the plan involves setting up a local RUTF factory in Katsina, which he described as both a health and economic project aimed at ensuring the steady supply of therapeutic food.
“To ensure a sustainable and consistent supply of therapeutic food, we are taking the visionary step of setting up local RUTF production factories right here in Katsina. This will not only guarantee regular supply but also stimulate our local economy and create jobs for our youths,” Radda stated.
Report says the factory will also support the ongoing expansion of Outpatient Therapeutic Programmes (OTPs) and stabilization centres in local government areas that currently lack such facilities.
The governor further revealed that the state has approved the employment of 2,377 new primary healthcare workers and 600 others in secondary health facilities. According to him, the decision is part of efforts to strengthen the health system following a N14 billion investment in 2024, which recorded an 87 per cent budget performance.
“Our administration is committed to revamping the health system from the ground up. We have prioritized human resources, infrastructure, and service delivery,” he said.
Radda also disclosed that Katsina contributed N1 billion to the Children’s Nutrition Fund in partnership with UNICEF and has enrolled more than 2.2 million vulnerable residents in the state’s health insurance scheme.
Social protection and maternal support
Reports indicate that the government has begun distributing 90,000 bags of grains to vulnerable families and caregivers of malnourished children as part of measures to cushion the effects of poverty, a major cause of malnutrition.
The governor also said his administration is considering extending maternity leave to six months to allow mothers more time to care for their infants.
“We cannot fight malnutrition without addressing poverty and food insecurity. That is why we are investing heavily in agriculture and social protection,” Radda said.
He urged traditional rulers, religious leaders, and other northwest governors to strengthen partnerships with development agencies in tackling child malnutrition across the region.
According to reports, the Abuja conference was hosted by the Katsina State Government and the Northwest Governors Forum in collaboration with the Office of the Vice President, UNICEF, the World Food Program (WFP), Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the World Bank, and several international partners to promote stronger political and financial action against malnutrition in northern Nigeria.
