According to the study, ‘Caught Short’ published by WaterAid on Tuesday, as many as 9.9 million Pakistani children under the age of five are stunted. This is the third highest population of children stunted behind the likes of India and Nigeria who lead in absolute numbers.
However, Pakistan ranks eighth in terms of prevalence of stunting with 45 per cent of the child population stunted. Around 39 per cent of the population does not have access to sanitation while nine per cent of the population does not have access to water.
Stunting is a form of malnutrition in which children are shorter than normal for their age and is largely irreversible after the age of two.
If they survive, they grow up physically and intellectually weaker than their better-fed peers.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 27th, 2016.
COMMENTS (1)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ