New findings from Catholic Relief Services reveal significant improvements in child nutrition, exclusive breastfeeding, and dietary diversity in Madagascar over the past decade, driven by local outreach and community engagement.
Families in Madagascar are beginning to see gains in the fight against malnutrition, with new findings from Catholic Relief Services showing better diets, more regular child growth monitoring and wider use of exclusive breastfeeding over the past decade.
The organisation said assessments carried out between 2015 and 2025 in its programme areas found improvements across several key indicators. Among pregnant and breastfeeding women, diets have become more varied and underweight has declined. More infants are being exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life, a practice health agencies have long identified as central to infant survival and growth.
Progress has also been recorded among young children. Catholic Relief Services said rates of underweight and stunting have fallen among children under five, while a larger share of children aged six to 23 months now receive an acceptable minimum diet. The group credits much of the change to local outreach, including community women who visit families to promote healthy feeding, hygiene and basic health care.
Mothers of children with moderate acute malnutrition can also take part in 10- to 12-day sessions that focus on preparing supplementary meals from local ingredients and improving hygiene habits. Community members are involved in monitoring child growth and identifying the causes of malnutrition, allowing responses to be adapted to local needs. The findings were presented on Wednesday at the Hôtel Louvre, underscoring how much of the work depends on changes in daily family routines.
The results also fit into a wider national picture. UNICEF says Madagascar continues to face a heavy burden of child undernutrition, with stunting affecting 46% of children under five, while just over half of infants aged 0 to 5 months are exclusively breastfed. The Global Nutrition Report puts the stunting rate at 39.8% and notes that anaemia among women of reproductive age and low birth weight remain major concerns. Earlier aid efforts, including a 2015 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to Catholic Relief Services, helped support food and nutrition needs in southern Madagascar, while past USAID work sought to strengthen national nutrition policy and reduce chronic malnutrition. A recent study in the journal Children also found that rural areas such as Itasy face a double burden of malnutrition, with both stunting and overweight present among children under two, reinforcing the scale and complexity of the challenge.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
