Mali

According to the IPC MNA, the nutritional situation in most of the districts in Mali is classified as “emergency” for 2024. Major contributing factors include the resurgence of armed conflicts, internal displacement, restrictions on humanitarian access, climate change, epidemics, low water availability, poor food consumption, and recurrent food insecurity. These factors have left 3.3 million people in need of urgent nutritional assistance, including 2.4 million children under 5 years old and 908,866 pregnant and lactating women.

Over the past decade, malnutrition has remained a significant concern in Mali, with considerable disparities based on age, gender, and regions. Among children under 5 years old, the prevalence of Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM), Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM), and Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) is 10.3%, 2.1%, and 25.4%, respectively. Additionally, children aged 6 to 23 months are most affected by GAM, with an average prevalence of 15.8%.

Furthermore, most internally displaced persons’ sites are classified as being in a state of nutritional emergency, with increasing prevalence of GAM among children and women, who constitute more than half of the internally displaced population. An analysis of needs has demonstrated severe nutritional severity (Phase 3 and above) in 48 administrative districts and the 6 communes of Bamako. The deterioration of the nutritional situation in these geographical areas is characterized by a combination of major factors, including armed conflict, internal displacement, restricted humanitarian access, climate change, epidemics, low water availability, poor food consumption, and recurrent food insecurity.

Scaling-up services for Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) by using multiple approaches adapted to emergency and security challenges.

Building capacities of health workers and community health workers on the implementation of early detection and treatment of SAM and MAM, and other nutrition specific interventions at both health facility and community levels.

Promoting health and nutrition positive behavior at community level, including counselling on Infant and Young Child Feeding practices with the use of standardized IEC tools on key family practices.

Strengthening micronutrients supplementation strategies for Vitamin A (VAS), iron/folic acid, iodized salt, deworming.

Enhancing coordination and nutrition monitoring in hot spots areas to better inform programming and deploy rapid response.

Limited humanitarian access in certain areas requiring the establishment of mobile clinics.
High costs and difficulties in supplying nutritional inputs.
Low coverage of nutritional interventions.
Lack of funding.