What is Severe Acute Malnutrition

Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM), the most extreme form of malnutrition, is a life-threatening condition that affects nearly 17 million children worldwide and requires urgent treatment, including therapeutic food packets, programs to manage SAM at the community level, as well as malnutrition prevention programs.

Due to funding, political commitment and capacity challenges in many different country contexts, only 3.21 million children with severe acute malnutrition are reached with lifesaving therapeutic food packets and care (of which supports 3.05 million). Kid Power’s immediate focus is to eliminate the funding gap, which is one key factor in preventing the delivery of therapeutic food packets to every child who needs it.