In today’s Special Report, we want to focus on stunted growth among children in Pakistan. Why, because the figures that have been compiled and brought out are startling, to say the least. 44 per cent of our children who are under five years of age are said to experience stunted growth. This is third highest percentage of stunted children in the world.

In apparent terms, stunting means short height for age of a child; in actual terms, it means an imperfect development of brain alongside the body. If a child does not receive enough food in the first two years, "it may lag behind in its key developmental milestones". This can have serious implications on the life of that individual, his chances of excelling in education and employment as well as on the collective social life.

Stunted growth among children is no accident of birth; it is linked to so much else, and a consequence of so much going wrong in this country. A malnourished girl child becomes a malnourished mother of children who inherit her poor health. It points at the huge distribution issues, of regions that are particularly food insecure and of course the "stark regional disparities in poverty" across the country.

There also are awareness issues; people are ignorant about the nutritional needs of the mother and child, especially the first 1000 days. It’s important, therefore, to know the instance of stunting is higher among children whose mothers
are illiterate than those "whose mothers have completed 10 years of education". Fortification of food with necessary
nutrients is another area that needs attention.

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All this requires a multi-pronged strategy and that needs a consolidated national data on not just stunting but so many other things. We have tried to draw attention to these issues and the right way to let the children grow up.