Day 4 - Food and Medicine are Just the Start

Our arrival in Burkina Faso is a shock to the system. Just off of the landing strip is the bare hulk of a plane that is slowly being devoured for parts. Like carrion, it’s in a semi-state of disembowelment. Steel bones jabbing at various angles into the clear sky are almost all that is left of it. The heat of the afternoon sun plays off what is left of its shining metallic skin. Even before we leave the airport, the magnitude of poverty in the country hits us squarely in the gut.

From a conversation with Burkina’s WFP Country Director, Anna Lisa Conte, we know hunger has increased across the country. Already vulnerable and suffering seasonal food insecurity, many families faced sharp declines in health and nutrition as a result of the spike in food prices. In response WFP, along with partners such as CRS, have put in place a number of emergency measures including a program that provides families with vouchers they can use to purchase food.

Malnutrition lurks even in the grain belt of Burkina Faso. The major bread basket of the country also has one of the highest rates of malnutrition. The paradox of hunger amidst plenty is in full view as we visit an emergency feeding center for malnourished children in Kirsi, a small nutrition and health clinic near Yako. The clinic is run by Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) and provides therapeutic feeding to malnourished children. On the day we are at the clinic more than three dozen children were registered to receive assistance from the clinic because they were suffering severe malnutrition. Eleven were sent to the nearby hospital because diseases such as diarrhea threatened their very life.

After years of experience, trial, error and improvement, the model MSF utilizes for treating malnourished children is down to a fine routine. The recovery rate is high, exceeding 90 percent. Yet, it is also clear, that the critical emergency assistance MSF is providing is not being matched by other interventions that will make emergency feeding programs unnecessary.

At least there is some hope that this will change. In the last few years, the government has been proactive in addressing nutrition as a unique problem requiring specific attention. They have created a Nutrition Directorate within the Ministry of Health and have written a National Nutrition Strategy to help coordinate the activities of the many NGOs and donor agencies currently working to promote child and maternal health. A good start, but as the scenes from the clinic demonstrate, much work remains to be done.

Comments

[Todd]

Interesting stuff. I'm really enjoying this series on the trip to Ghana and Burkina Faso. Looking forward to hearing more.