Sri Lanka has launched an urgent appeal to address rapidly spreading child malnutrition, AFP reports.

The Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs has called for private donations to feed what may be several hundred thousand malnourished children.

A bankrupt state, struggling with Sri Lanka's worst economic crisis since independence, has been unable to sustain prosperity.

In mid-2021, there were 127,000 malnourished children out of 570,000 girls and boys under the age of five, he said. Since then, he estimates, their numbers have increased several times over due to rampant inflation and severe shortages of food and other necessities.

He said the number of people receiving direct government benefits has almost doubled over the past year, and more than 90 percent of the population now rely on government financial assistance. Among them are about 1.6 million civil servants.

Inflation in Sri Lanka was officially estimated at 60.8 percent in July, but private economists say it is well over 100 percent and second only to Zimbabwe.

UNICEF also launched a funding appeal, saying children in Sri Lanka have been disproportionately affected by the severe economic crisis.

Late last year, the country ran out of foreign exchange to finance even essential imports, and in mid-April, Colombo defaulted on its $51 billion foreign debt.