Lower-income countries with poor nutritional governance do not have a strong foundation of strategies, policies, and programs to address child and maternal nutrition problems.

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Lower-income countries with poor nutritional governance do not have a strong foundation of strategies, policies, and programs to address child and maternal nutrition problems. The decision-making of the Ministry of Health may be influenced by politics and other interests rather than improving essential nutritional services to children and mothers (UNICEF, 2022). Adopting a national nutrition surveillance system will provide ongoing information about the nutrition needs of the population, along with factors contributing to the triple burden of malnutrition (overnutrition, undernutrition, and micronutrient deficiencies). A surveillance system can also track the nation’s progress to reaching nutrition goals, warnings of potential risks, assess services and programs provided, and inform nutrition policies and progress programs (Hall & Tuffrey, 2016). 

Somalia is a lower-income country where the burden of malnutrition creates a poverty trap for generations. Malnutrition in Somalia mainly affects children, women of reproductive age, and adolescents starting from child and maternal nutrition issues (UNICEF Somalia Country Office, 2020). Undernutrition causes vulnerabilities to infectious diseases, low-birth rates, diarrhea and pneumonia, and micronutrient deficiencies. “It is estimated that undernutrition causes 45 percent of all child deaths in settings like Somalia- where neonatal, infant and under-five mortality rates are among the highest globally” (UNICEF Somalia Country Office, 2020).