Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine Causes Food Price Spikes, UN Warns Of Undernourished Children

JAKARTA - The United Nations children's agency (UN) has warned of the threat of malnutrition among children, as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine which has been ongoing since late February.

The cost of life-saving treatment for the most severely malnourished children will soar by 16 percent, due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the disruption of the pandemic, according to UNICEF.

They said this was related to the soaring price of raw materials for ready-to-eat therapeutic foods, amid the global food crisis triggered by war and pandemics.

Without further funding in the next six months, 600.000-plus children may miss out on essential care, which is a high-energy paste made from ingredients including peanuts, oil, sugar and added nutrients.

UNICEF did not specify how much increased spending would be required to maintain the programme. It is said, a box of special nutrition containing 150 packages, enough for 6 to 8 weeks to restore a severely malnourished child, costs around USD 41 on average.

In addition to broader pressures on food security, including climate change, rising prices could lead to levels of severe malnutrition that constitute 'catastrophic', the children's agency warned in a statement.

"The world is rapidly becoming a virtual firebox of preventable child deaths and child wasting," said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell, cited from Reuters, May 17.

Severe wasting, a condition in which children are too thin for their height, affects 13.6 million children under 5 years old, resulting in 1 in 5 deaths among this age group.

UNICEF added that even before the war and pandemic, two out of three children did not have access to the therapeutic food needed to save their life.