Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), a global health humanitarian non-governmental organisation, said it treated 60,566 children for malnutrition in Zamfara State in 2025 alone.

In an official communication posted on the NGO’s official Facebook page on Wednesday, MSF said the situation was aggravated by hunger and disease.

‘The rains also coincide with the lean season, when food stored are exhausted and new harvests are still months away. Undernutrition weakens immune systems, turning common illnesses into deadly threats, particularly for children.

“In 2025, MSF treated 60,566 children for malnutrition in Zamfara, as hunger and disease combined into a dangerous cycle,’ the organisation said.

PREMIUM TIMES reports that Zamfara State is the epicentre of a decade-long menace of banditry that has ravaged Nigeria’s northwest.

The bike-riding terrorists often invade communities, killing and abducting residents. Most of those affected in the rural communities are farmers and traders.

Killing of farmers and displacement of others has affected food production as a PREMIUM TIMES field investigation revealed in 2023.

Besides malnutrition, MSF said it has also treated children for various diseases in the state.

In 2025, the group said it ‘treated 136,778 malaria and 13,877 cholera patients in Zamfara, showing how quickly illness escalates during the rainy season.’

The health NGO said every year, the rainy season brought diseases, complicating the already strained situation in the state and the sub-region.

‘In northwestern Nigeria, particularly in Zamfara State, the rainy season brings more than relief from the heat. It brings distress, disease, and preventable deaths.

” For communities already affected by years of armed violence, displacement, and poverty, daily survival between May and September becomes an overwhelming struggle as flooding, outbreaks of infectious diseases, and worsening food insecurity come together,” it noted.

READ ALSO: Zamfara govt gives free medical treatment to 6,842 persons

MSF said while it would continue to scale up its emergency responses across northern Nigeria. However, it noted that most of the deaths were preventable.

“Preventive action before and during the rainy season is critical. Strengthening community awareness, improving access to safe water and sanitation, and ensuring timely vaccination campaigns can reduce the impact of diseases,” said Sani Adamu, nursing activity manager in MSF project Shinkafi.

“Health facilities must also be properly equipped and supported to diagnose and treat patients quickly and effectively.”

Abdulwahab Matepo, the group’s president, spoke at a press conference on Wednesday in Amuwo-Odofin, Lagos.

Mr Matepo highlighted the neglect and lack of attention to rehabilitation issues in Nigeria despite the high incidence of spinal cord injuries due to road crashes, violence and other causes.

“I did my own (rehabilitation) in Germany. She (secretary) did hers in India. You have people like that. If you ask anybody who has done rehab, it’s either India, Germany, the UK, the US, or South Africa,” the disability rights advocate said.

“ There’s no simple rehab work facility for us in Nigeria.”

He noted that disability is a universal possibility that can impact any individual at any moment, highlighting the critical necessity for accessible rehabilitation services.

Spinal cord injury occurs when the spinal cord is damaged, disrupting communication between the body and the brain. It damages the nerves in the spinal column, leading to varying degrees of permanent motor, sensory, and functional impairment.

To help survivors of violence, falls, and road traffic accidents in Nigeria regain their quality of life, comprehensive rehabilitation is essential. Such services are urgently needed to foster independence and prevent potentially life-threatening complications.

Government support

Mr Matepo noted that the government allocated some hectares of land to the group for the construction of a rehabilitation centre, but their involvement seems to end there.

He, however, noted that the Lagos State government has contributed by fencing the premises and landscaping, but the purpose of the land has yet to be achieved.

According to Mr Matepo, adjusting to life after a spinal cord injury is difficult.

He noted that the absence of mental health resources and societal barriers to embracing this new reality exacerbate the risks of suicide and depression among survivors.

He explained that at the rehabilitation hospital, the spinal cord injury patients would undergo mental health, physical, occupational and vocational therapy, amongst others.

He said the physical therapy includes training in using wheelchairs and other assistive devices, which is often necessary but not always provided, while occupational therapy helps individuals learn new skills to maintain economic independence and community integration.

Mr Matepo added that mental health therapy is crucial for coping with the psychological impact of the injury, including depression, which is a significant issue amongst spinal cord injury survivors.

He also shared a personal experience of being advised to find ground-floor accommodation after he was discharged from the hospital, six months after the accident that left him wheelchair-bound.

Rehabilitation 20230 initiative, policy gap

The group’s president said that in 2017, the World Health Organisation (WHO) launched a programme called ‘Rehabilitation 2030,’ and developed a tool to assess how each country is performing.

The initiative aims to recognise rehabilitation as an essential service and integrate it into the healthcare system.

“Recently, they were in Nigeria to deploy the tool, and what they found was far below expectations,” Mr Matepo said.

He noted that Nigeria lacks a rehabilitation policy and that rehabilitation is not mentioned in its health policy.

Rehabilitation centre overview

On his part, David Majekodunmi, an architect and consultant, emphasised the role of a rehabilitation centre in restoring dignity, rebuilding independence and creating hope for individuals with spinal cord injuries.

Mr Majekodunmi noted that the proposed centre would feature a comprehensive range of facilities, including specialised spinal rehabilitation boards, physiotherapy and occupational therapy units, hydrotherapy and mobility training facilities, and vocational and skills-acquisition facilities.