- With stunting and wasting at 21.8 and 9.7% respectively in 2019, Malaysia was experiencing a malnutrition crisis even prior to COVID-19.
- The COVID-19 pandemic has directly resulted in a severe economic crisis that will exacerbate food and nutrition insecurity.
- People who are already exposed to critical food and dietary deprivations before COVID-19 are most vulnerable to food insecurity.
- Food and nutrition insecurity are linked to malnutrition, where children in households with food insecurity were more likely to be malnourished.
- Beyond the consequences for individuals and families, food and nutrition insecurity has been linked to long-term economic effects such as higher health care expenditures, lower educational achievement, lost productivity, lower earnings in adulthood and increased risk of poverty later in life.
- Strengthening child-sensitive and nutrition-focused social protection is essential to reducing vulnerability, building resilience, and mitigating the impacts of COVID-19 crisis and should be a top policy priority
Download PDF here (Unicef, Nov 2020)
