The roots of stunting

Stunting is a serious public health issue as it is the cause of half of all child deaths. It results from repeated undernourishment or poor feeding practices in children leading to a deficiency in one or more essential nutrients. In 2017 and 2019 the prevalence of chronic malnutrition at the national level was acceptable at 17% and 19% respectively. However the Sédhiou region known for its fertile land and rich and diverse crops has precarious rates of chronic malnutrition: 21.4% in 2013 26.6% in 2018 and 28.7% in 2019. The objective of this study is to examine the factors associated with stunting in children under 5 years of age in the Sédhiou region in 2019. This is a descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study. The target population for the study was children under 5 years of age. The sampling method chosen for this survey was two-stage cluster sampling.