Africa-Press – Ethiopia. October 9, 2025 2 minutes read Addis Abeba – More than 100,000 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition were admitted for treatment across Ethiopia between July and August 2025, UNICEF said in its latest Humanitarian Situation Report.
According to the report, a total of 104,891 children with severe wasting received therapeutic feeding during the two-month period. The program recorded a 94% cure rate, a 2% default rate, and a mortality rate of 0.2%, highlighting what UNICEF described as “strong results and high-quality interventions” amid growing humanitarian needs.
The Oromia Region recorded the highest regional caseload, with 39,284 children under five treated for severe acute malnutrition (SAM) through outpatient and stabilization centers.
In the Afar Region, 7,193 children under five were treated for severe acute malnutrition, with 2% requiring inpatient care due to complications. Mobile health teams working in hard-to-reach areas managed 6.6% of total admissions. The program reported a 94.4% cure rate and a mortality rate of just 0.1%.
In the Amhara Region, 16,423 children were admitted for SAM treatment. While the overall cure rate reached 88.6%, UNICEF noted that 548 children—65% of all defaulted cases—were from Sayint and Meket woredas, where ongoing conflict and inaccessibility disrupted nutrition supplies.
In Tigray, 7,582 children received SAM treatment, while a late-August “Find and Treat” campaign screened over 53,000 children, identifying 703 with severe malnutrition and 80% of more than 15,000 pregnant and lactating women as acutely malnourished. In the Somali Region, 16,746 children received SAM treatment during the same period.
Across Benishangul-Gumuz, 502 children were admitted for SAM treatment out of over 21,000 screened. In Gambella, an integrated measles and nutrition campaign screened 123,633 children under five, identifying 318 new SAM cases.
In South Ethiopia, Central Ethiopia, Sidama, and Southwest Ethiopia, a combined 17,012 children were admitted for SAM treatment. Cure rates ranged from 86.6% in Central Ethiopia to 96.6% in Southwest Ethiopia.
UNICEF said the overall therapeutic feeding performance across the country remained strong but warned that continued insecurity, supply shortages, and funding gaps risk undermining gains made in child nutrition interventions. UNICEF further warned that the funding gap for operational needs under the Nutrition Cluster’s Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan could threaten program continuity.
In August, Ethiopia launched a five-year multisectoral drive to combat child wasting, one of the country’s most urgent yet under-addressed public health threats, amid mounting evidence of worsening malnutrition, which now “affects more than 11% of Ethiopian children under five,” up from the 7.68% prevalence recorded in the 2019 Ethiopian Mini Demographic and Health Survey.
The 2019 survey highlighted systemic challenges, including low maternal education, limited antenatal and postnatal care, large households, poor dietary diversity, and home deliveries, all contributing to acute undernutrition. Wasting threatens children’s growth, cognitive development, and long-term productivity, and experts warn that without urgent action, Ethiopia risks missing its national and global nutrition commitments.
In March 2025, the Global Nutrition Cluster, a coalition of 33 NGOs, warned that acute malnutrition rates in several regions had “surpassed the critical threshold of 15%.” Stabilization centers reported the highest mortality rates in Gambella, Benishangul Gumuz, and Southwest Ethiopia, while Amhara recorded the highest treatment non-response rates.
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