Hadjara with her 5-month-old son
Lawali at a therapeutic feeding
centre in Aguie, Niger.

"AGUIE, Niger, 10 August 2005 - "My son's name is Lawali," says 30-year old Hadjara. "He's five months old. He's still very weak, but I think he's getting better. His eyes follow me around now."

Lawali is snuggled in his mother's lap in a colourful cloth wrap to keep his tiny body warm. Hadjara sits on a thin mat on the floor of a therapeutic feeding centre in Aguie village, in the Maradi region of Niger - hit hard by the current food crisis.

Hadjara is spoon-feeding her son with nutritious therapeutic milk, supplied by UNICEF. Lawali swallows each spoonful of milk with a small gulp, and as with all babies, some of it trickles down his chin. Therapeutic milk is rich in nutrients and is easy to digest for children like Lawali." [Read more]