Nigeria pushes for critical restructuring of $180.2m nutrition project despite worsening crisis
By Esther Agbo
Nigeria is urgently seeking the World Bank’s approval for a third restructuring of its $180.2 million Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRiN) project, as the country faces an intensifying food and nutrition crisis in its northern regions.
The request, submitted by the Federal Ministry of Finance on June 7, 2024, highlights the dire situation, particularly in the North-East, North-West, and North-Central regions, where malnutrition levels are spiking.
The document read: “This paper seeks the approval of the Country Director to restructure the Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRiN) Project (P162069, IDA Credit No. 6269, Grant No. TF0A7516). This is the third restructuring of the ANRiN Project.”
The ANRiN project, launched in June 2018 with an initial budget of $225 million in funding from the International Development Association (IDA) and a $7 million grant from the Global Financing Facility (GFF), represents Nigeria’s largest commitment to combating malnutrition.
Targeting the most vulnerable groups, pregnant women, lactating mothers, adolescent girls, and children under five, the project aims to address the widespread issue of malnutrition and stunting across 11 high-burden states.
Despite facing initial setbacks, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and a partial cancellation of $51.8 million from the IDA credit which revised the project’s financing to $180.2 million, the ANRiN project has achieved significant milestones.
By May 2024, over 8.5 million children under five had received vital nutrition services, nearly 4 million pregnant women had benefited from basic nutrition support, and 2.6 million children at risk of severe malnutrition had received treatment. The involvement of non-state actors has been instrumental in these successes, with 26 of the project’s 33 Disbursement Linked Results (DLRs) already met.
However, with just months remaining until the project’s scheduled end in December 2024, Nigeria’s worsening nutrition crisis has prompted a call for urgent restructuring. The proposed changes include reallocating $30 million from project management to bolster the Integrated Management of Acute Malnutrition (IMAM) in the hardest-hit states. A new Project Development Objective (PDO) indicator will also be introduced to better measure the effectiveness of interventions aimed at treating Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM).
The urgency of this restructuring is underscored by the broader financial context, as Nigeria’s debt to the World Bank has surged by $1.07 billion under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, raising concerns about the country’s rising external debt obligations.
Yet, with Nigeria securing $4.95 billion in World Bank loans this year alone, the success of the ANRiN project remains a critical priority in addressing the country’s escalating food and nutrition crisis.
