KEUR MBAR — U.S. federal foreign aid funding for programs in Senegal was reduced. The therapeutic food Plumpy'Nut is frequently unavailable at local clinics. Approximately one in ten children in Senegal are acutely malnourished. Yacine Lo, who resides outside of Keur Mbar in western Senegal, said: "They were very, very weak. It's very sad to see your kids that way. When my kids aren't well, I can't be well, I can't even eat." She added: "When you see that your kids are in good health, you are happy and feel good, because this is something natural, this is something human. But whenever your child is suffering, you suffer with them." Diarra, one of Lo's twin children, continues to require treatment for malnutrition.

Senegal partnered with U.S. funding and nonprofit organizations in 2022 to expand local access to therapeutic food. That same year, Helen Keller Intl partnered with the Senegal Ministry of Health to train community health workers, including Fatma Diouf in Keur Mbar, to treat severe acute malnutrition. "I'm part of this community," Diouf said. This program expanded to five regions in Senegal and screened hundreds of thousands of children. Mamadou Dieng, the regional health director in Diourbel, stated: "The impact has been very positive. Many children who normally wouldn't be screened have been screened, and there has been a reduction in the mortality rate."

USAID provided funding for the program in its early stages and supported nutrition staff across Senegal until 2025. Ndèye Astou Badiane, country director in Senegal for Helen Keller Intl, stated: "So many activities that were supported by the American government have stopped all of a sudden." She added: "About half of the mortality of children under 5 is related to malnutrition."

Latsouk Faye, regional supervisor for food, nutrition and child survival in Diourbel, said: "It's having a heavy impact. Many people just abandon, they no longer come to the clinics. Malnutrition is coming back." The State Department allocated $23 million for maternal, child health, and nutrition resources in Senegal. The U.S. government contributed over $1 billion to UNICEF in 2024 for nutrition supply efforts, and UNICEF purchases and distributes the majority of ready-to-use therapeutic food in Senegal. The Senegal Ministry of Health planned to expand the community health worker model nationwide.