DOI: https://doi.org/10.36347/gamj.2024.v05i04.002

Pages: 110-118

Introduction: Reducing infant and child mortality and morbidity as well as the suffering of refugees requires the fight against malnutrition, particularly acute malnutrition which mainly affects children under the age of five. This scourge continues to disrupt the well-being of several families in the Saagniogniogo refugee camp, despite all the appreciable efforts made by the Burkinabé State and its partners. This was a cross-sectional study with a descriptive aim. The objective of the present study was to determine the factors favoring the occurrence of acute malnutrition in children under five years of age in the Malian war refugee camp of Saagniogniogo. Materials and methods: Through a cross-sectional survey, we determined the qualification of health personnel for the management of acute malnutrition, the impact of the living environment and the refugee context and the knowledge of mothers on the child nutrition and hygienic-dietary measures in the Malian war refugee camp of Saagniognogo. We made a reasoned choice to retain all the 7 healthcare providers participating in the infant consultation. For the choice of mothers of children under five years old, we carried out simple random sampling to have a representative sample. We therefore retained 86/115 mothers of children under five years old with reference to the table by KREJCIE and MORGAN. This table has a confidence level set at 95% and precision at 5%. Results: It appears from our results that the refugee context has considerably reduced the purchasing power of refugees. Of the 86 mothers surveyed, 47, or 54.65%, say they have other sources of income apart from the aid granted and 39 mothers, or 45.35%, are entirely dependent on humanitarian aid. The 47 mothers with other sources of income say that they can only provide one meal per day with their own funds. Of the 5 healthcare providers, 3 or 60% know the MAM classification criteria. Conclusion: This study certainly allowed us to understand that ...........