By Robin Stringer(Bloomberg) -- - Indonesian primary school children in disaster-hit regions Aceh and Nias are suffering stunted growth and retarded intellectual development, according to a study by the United Nations World Food Programme.
``The situation is quite concerning,'' said program coordinator Charlie Higgins on the UN Web Site. `` Health and nutrition-related morbidity -- the incidence of disease -- is high.''
Researchers looked at 1,440 primary school children in 60 schools in Aceh, which was struck by the December 2004 Tsunami, and 480 children in 20 schools on the island of Nias, which suffered an earthquake in March 2005.
A total of 27 percent of children in Aceh and 37 percent in Nias suffered stunted growth. One in five children was ``significantly underweight.''
Researchers found low cognitive performance in 40 percent of children in Nias, where 28 percent of the island's children were malnourished. Over half the children in Aceh had parasitic infections, and 75 percent of children in Nias suffered worm infestations.
The World Food Programme will work with the United Nations Children's Fund and the Indonesian Red Cross to run an anti-worm campaign in schools.
Indonesia was the worst-hit country in the tsunami that devastated coastal communities across the Indian Ocean on Dec. 26, 2004. More than 200,000 people from Indonesia, Thailand, the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Somalia were killed in the disaster.