Abstract

Child malnutrition is a widespread issue in developing countries, resulting in severe consequences such as delayed physical and cognitive development, as well as an increased risk of infections and mortality. This situation leads to disabilities and handicaps, contributing to a reduction in the workforce and significant economic losses. Children are particularly affected, representing a significant portion of deaths related to infant malnutrition, primarily caused by diseases such as measles, pneumonia, and diarrhea.
In Morocco, efforts have been made to improve children's health conditions through programs aimed at enhancing their nutritional status and reducing infant mortality. These programs include the National Immunization Program (NIP), the Fight against Deficiency Diseases Program, diarrheal diseases, and acute respiratory infections, as well as the Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI) strategy.
The evaluation of children's nutritional status is done through anthropometric indicators such as height-for-age, weight-for-age, and weight-for-height. These measures are compared to growth standards established by the World Health Organization (WHO) to determine the presence of malnutrition. Z-scores are used for this comparison, where a score below two standard deviations below the median of the reference population indicates stunted growth, underweight, or wasting in the child.
By analyzing the prevalence of malnutrition nationwide for these indicators, we can then examine how it varies based on child, maternal, household, and environmental characteristics.
To address these complex issues related to child malnutrition, we plan to use logit models. These models will allow us to capture the isolated effect of various variables, while taking into account all other constant variables. By employing this approach, we can gain a better understanding of the factors influencing children's nutritional status, identifying the most significant determinants, and developing effective strategies to combat infant malnutrition. The data used to address this issue refer to the National Health and Family Planning Survey (ENSPF-2018).