The burden of malnutrition and mortality in humanitarian emergencies : efficient use of health surveys from Ethiopia

Comprehensive analysis of the impact of humanitarian emergencies on nutrition and mortality is limited in Ethiopia. This is mainly due to either the lack of nationally representative data or non-generalizability of subnational health surveys in such settings. Consequently, humanitarian decisions and advocacy are often based on anecdotal information or non-representative data with limited geographical coverage. The aims of this study are therefore to investigate the burden of malnutrition and mortality, and to identify its causes in humanitarian settings. Given the data challenges, we apply advanced epidemiological methods in existing population-based health surveys. The key findings are: i) the burden of child undernutrition is declining, but are persistent and higher in moderate drought areas; ii) the burden of child mortality falls below both the emergency and baseline thresholds for sub-Saharan Africa; iii) the burden of women’s undernutrition is higher near the borders. On the basis of these findings, we provide propositions to guide effective humanitarian interventions.(SP - Sciences de la santé publique) -- UCL, 201