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Five people die of malnutrion in NTT
At least five people, including three aged under five, died recently from malnutrition in Rote Ndao, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), following government "financial difficulties"
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At least five people, including three aged under five, died recently from malnutrition in Rote Ndao, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), following government "financial difficulties".
Head of the Rote Ndao health office Jonathan Lenggu said the victims suffered from complications such as diarrhea, tuberculosis and high fever that led to their deaths.
"Malnourished people are quite prone to diseases such as diarrhea, TB and dengue because they have low immunity," he said Thursday.
Lenggu said three of the victims died this week and two last week, but gave no other details.
Head of health issues at the provincial government, Maxi Taopan, said the five dead had been suffering from malnutrition for a long time, but the local government had not been able to respond immediately because of a "financial problem".
"After the central government ended financial assistance in 2007, malnutrition has become uncontrollable. Still, the province has proposed an allocation of Rp 56 billion to address the issue," he said.
He called on the coordinating minister for people's welfare to visit the regency to assess poverty and malnutrition.
"If the government accepts our request, we will use the funds to supply food to poor families and revitalize women's and children's health posts in rural areas across the province," he said.
Up to 90,000 of the 497,577 children aged under five in the province are suffering from malnutrition, and 12,400 have had complications, according to the provincial government's 2008 data.
Taopan said the highest number of malnutrition sufferers with clinical disorders was found in North Timor Tengah, with 81 patients being treated in clinics and hospitals, followed by 27 in West Sumba and 13 in Rote Ndao.
"The highest frequency is in South Timor Tengah with 12,971 sufferers, followed by more than 8,400 in Sikka, 8,300 in Manggarai, 7,200 in North Timor Tengah and 6,800 in Kupang," he said.
