TEMPO.CO, Kupang - Crop failure that hits East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) province has taken its toll on infants there.
As many as 1,918 out of 330,214 infants in the province are suffering from malnutrition.
Eleven of them have died.
The data was released by East Nusa Tenggara Health Agency. The data also reveals that the infants suffering from malnutrition are evenly spread in 22 regencies/cities in East Nusa Tenggara province.
"The biggest number of patients are found in Southwest Sumba regency (200 infants), Kupang regency (197 infants), and South Central Timor regency (146 infants),” the report said.
In the meantime, an economist from Artha Wacana Christian University in Kupang, Frits Fanggidae, said that malnutrition and crop failure have now become an annual occurrence.
"The government must immediately make an emergency response and prevent this problem from getting worse,” he added.
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