The impact of armed conflicts on the nutritional status of children: Evidence from Northern Nigeria

Armed conflicts often significantly exacerbate the magnitude and severity of malnutrition by increasing food insecurity. Evidence shows that malnutrition is among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among children during conflicts. This study examines the impact of the armed conflicts in Northern Nigeria on nutritional status of children under the age of five. Three waves (2008, 2013, and 2018) of individual-level birth records data from the Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) dataset are spatially merged with information on conflict events drawn from the Armed Conflict Location and Events Dataset. All fatal incidents in the study region during the 5-year intervals 2004-2008, 2009-2013 and 2014-2018 are aggregated and mapped to the 2008, 2013 and 2018 NDHS clusters, respectively. A cluster is classified to be exposed to conflict if located within 5-10 km radius of an incident with at least 1 fatality. We use matching analysis in a difference-in-differences approach to estimate the effects of the conflicts on stunting, wasting, and underweight. We find that the impact of conflict exposure differs by the dimension of child nutritional status. While it significantly lowers the risk of stunting, it has no discernible significant effect on the likelihood of wasting or being underweight among under-fives. Though nutritional support/interventions in the conflict-affected areas are crucial and must be prioritised, an all-inclusive strategy for a long-term resolution of the conflict is needed to engender development, improve food security, reduce vulnerability to malnutrition, and improve the health and wellbeing of the residents of the region.Armed conflict exerts beneficial effects on chronic malnutrition among children in Northern Nigeria by reducing the probability of being stunted.The effect of armed conflict on child wasting in Northern Nigeria is time-variant. The conflict negatively affects child wasting in the short term (2008 and 2013) but reduces the likelihood of a child being wasted in the long term (2008 and 2018).Socio-economic status of the household/mother has a significant effect on the nutritional status of a child in Northern Nigeria.The rainy season is associated with significantly poorer nutritional (i.e., higher risks of stunting, wasting and underweight) status in children in Northern Nigeria due to the conflicts.