Shehu Aminu was hardly surprised when the last of his six children was diagnosed with malnutrition in April for a second time.
He had hardly been able to feed the 18-month-old regularly, let alone with nutritious foods.
Although the family in northwest Nigeria has struggled with economic hardship, their situation deteriorated after February, when he lost his job as a taxi driver due to a spike in the retail price of petrol caused by the war in Iran.
“I could no longer keep up with my financial obligations. I now struggle to provide for my family,” Aminu said in the living area of their unvarnished two-bedroom house in the quiet town of Kware, Sokoto, as ash from the coal stove billowed into the room.
Children relapsing into malnutrition has become an increasingly common occurrence in the state and across northern Nigeria, according to local health and aid workers, who cite knock-on effects from the Iran war.
