Nigeria is grappling with a triple burden of malnutrition; undernutrition, overnutrition, and micronutrient deficiencies, the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare warned on Thursday.

The Permanent Secretary, Daju Kachollom, speaking at a nutrition roundtable in Abuja organised by Nigeria Health Watch, said malnutrition continues to undermine the nation’s health and economic potential, particularly for women and children.

Represented by the ministry’s Director of Nutrition, Ladidi Bako-Aiyegbusi, she described the crisis as “hidden hunger,” fueled by diets dominated by calorie-dense but nutrient-poor staples like maize, cassava, and rice.

“According to the 2024 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey, stunting stands at 40 per cent, wasting at eight per cent, while underweight is 27 per cent among children aged six to 59 months,

“One in three children is vitamin A deficient, more than one in three lacks zinc, and over 20 per cent suffer from iron deficiency. Adolescent girls and pregnant women also face alarming rates of vitamin A and iron deficiency, threatening maternal and newborn survival,” she said.

Kachollom noted that inflation, floods, and conflict have worsened food insecurity, with 79 per cent of the population unable to access sufficient nutritious food.

Since 1993, the government has pursued large-scale food fortification to address hidden hunger, achieving nearly universal salt iodisation and widespread fortification of wheat flour, sugar, and vegetable oil. But compliance, she admitted, is uneven especially among Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) due to weak enforcement, poor awareness, and costly reliance on imported raw materials.

She said the government is repositioning its fortification strategy, including scaling up fortified rice, promoting branded fortified edible oils, and exploring bouillon cubes as affordable carriers of essential nutrients like iron, zinc, folic acid, and vitamin B12. Digital traceability platforms are also being introduced to ensure fortified foods reach consumers safely.

Nigeria Health Watch Managing Director, Vivianne Ihekweazu, represented by Deputy Director of Advocacy and Partnerships, Safiya Isah, said malnutrition in Nigeria is not only about insufficient calories but also about “hidden hunger” caused by micronutrient gaps.

“The heavy reliance on calorie-rich but nutrient-poor staples has left too many of our children, women, and communities vulnerable,” she said. “Food fortification remains one of the most proven, cost-effective, and scalable solutions — but compliance challenges, high costs, and dependence on imported premixes are stalling progress.”

She stressed that strengthening local solutions, from building domestic premix production capacity to supporting MSMEs, is crucial to tackling the crisis.

In her own presentation, Bako-Aiyegbusi, represented by NAFDAC Deputy Director of Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Ummulkhaire Bobboi, noted that while Nigeria’s nutrition indicators have improved since 2001, deficiencies remain “alarmingly high.” She emphasised that food fortification can cut rates of anaemia, goiter, and child mortality, while boosting productivity and growth.

She called for stronger collaboration across government, regulators, private sector, academia, NGOs, and international partners to close Nigeria’s nutrition gap.