Sembe Pap: A High Nutrient and Energy Custard to Overcome Malnutrition in Biamo and Makary

Situated in the Lake Chad basin, the Logone and Chari Division is repeatedly exposed to weather related shocks, most recently floods in 2022 and drought in 2019. The population suffers from chronic food insecurity and structural poverty, with the food and nutrition situation expected to deteriorate further in 2023 because most farms were destroyed by the waters. There is already a high prevalence of chronic and acute malnutrition, especially among children 6-59 months of age, pregnant and lactating women/girls, and the elderly: chronic malnutrition reaches 44% and global acute malnutrition rate 12%. According to health center statistics from the Makary subdivision, our target area, the number of malnourished children rose from 30 in 2021 to 160 in 2022. UNICEF oversees the treatment of children with severe acute malnutrition (SAM) in health centers. But children and adults suffering from moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) which make up 70% of cases are left with no proper care.