Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – Widespread and severe malnutrition has been declared across Rote Island, off West Timor, following the death of five children this month.
In addition, some 90,000 of almost 500,000 children were registered as suffering from severe hunger and malnutrition this month across East Nusa Tenggara province.
Rote Island's administration said it was now running a door-to-door campaign to encourage families with small children in remote villages, including offshore, to attend health facilities on the mainland for treatment.
The latest victims were 11-month-old Marlon Lay and two-month-old Melati. Their deaths last week saw the immediate area's death toll rise to seven – five from Rote Island and two from Kupang city, West Timor.
Rote-Ndao's administrative secretary Joel Yakob said Wednesday residents were faced with financial hardships and they found it difficult to bring their children to medical centers.
"That's why we have taken the initiative to send medical teams to fetch sufferers door-to-door in four districts," Yakob said.
"Each child will undergo an initial diagnosis and we will bring affected children to health centers and hospitals for treatment."
The number of malnourished children across East Nusa Tenggara had so far reached 90,000 out of a total of 497,577 children below the age of five, he said. On Rote Island, as many as 12,400 have been affected badly by malnutrition, including 167 with acute malnutrition, Taopan said. North Central Timor regency reported 81 cases, followed by West Sumba with 27 cases.
The highest number of children found to be malnourished was in Southern Timor regency, with 12,971, followed by Sikka with 8,472 children, Manggarai with 8,364 children, North Central Timor with 7,267 children and Kupang with 6,865 children.
Yakob said malnutrition and severe food shortages were the result of harvest failures and a long drought in 2007. "Food shortage is the main cause of malnutrition, apart from people's economic difficulties," Yakob said.
The local administration said it has set aside Rp 1 billion (approximately US$111,000) from its newly approved budget to help solve food shortages. "The funds are specially aimed at handling the extraordinary situation," Yakob said.
From the center of Rote Island, Ba'a district hospital's director Delly Pasande said the hospital had prepared the necessary facilities to treat patients.
"Ba'a hospital can accommodate 50 patients," he said. "We have also prepared the required medicines, including highly nutritious food supplements."
Healthcare supervision head at the provincial health office Maxi Taopan said the office had not yet received Rp 50 billion in assistance funds pledged by Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari. "So we are unable to handle the problem optimally," Taopan said.