Charity denies hunger 'forgery'

Niger has frequently suffered food crises and malnutrition

Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) has rebutted claims that it exaggerated the number of malnourished children in Niger.

The charity has appealed to be allowed to resume work in the region of Maradi, where Niger's government ordered it to stop operating in July.

MSF said some 8,000 children had since been deprived of treatment.

The BBC's Idy Baraou reports from Niger that there are fears of a malnutrition epidemic in coming months.

Human rights groups report that government hospitals are not adequately equipped to deal with the challenge, he says.

The situation is critical Marie-Pierre Allie MSF president

But Niger's Health Minister Issa Lamine told state radio at the weekend that the situation in Maradi was "not dramatic" and that the local health authorities could handle it.

Niger's government has accused MSF of working illegally, inventing numbers for malnourished children, and conducting propaganda about famine in order to raise money.

However, MSF President Marie-Pierre Allie said her organisation had been using figures provided by Niger's health ministry.

"Saying that MSF is forging numbers to collect money is unacceptable," she told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme.

"MSF is communicating to report on the situation, what's happening to the population we're serving, and not to collect money."

"The situation is critical. There is a high number of malnourished kids waiting for care in the hospitals, in the health centres, and there are many, many kids not even coming to these structures," she said.

"What I've been hearing in Maradi from the health staff is that they cannot face the situation today - that too many kids were in need of care."