Some key actions needed for the African continent, and globally, to transform agrifood systems and deliver better nutrition, have been outlined by the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), QU Dongyu, reports NaijaAgronet.
Speaking at a high-level meeting of African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Mr. Dongyu explained that a series of key actions should be put in place to address Africa’s nutrition challenges.
One of them, he said, is to promote nutrition-sensitive agrifood systems making sure they deliver safe, nutritious, and diverse food to all people.
“Agriculture has the potential to improve nutrition outcomes, and we need to ensure that agricultural policies and programmes prioritize nutrition,” he explained.
For Qu, it is also necessary to scale up interventions that address the underlying causes of malnutrition such as promoting breastfeeding, improving access to safe drinking water and improving hygiene and sanitation.
The FAO Director-General asked African leaders to promote accountability for results by setting targets, tracking progress and being transparent about achievements and challenges, as well as to strengthen the capacity of national nutrition systems to collect, analyze and use data.
“Addressing malnutrition requires a multi-sectoral approach, and we need to work together to achieve our collective targets by leveraging the expertise, resources, and networks of all stakeholders to make effective progress in addressing malnutrition,” he underscored, urging to strengthen partnerships and collaboration.
One of them, he said, is to promote nutrition-sensitive agrifood systems making sure they deliver safe, nutritious, and diverse food to all people.
“Agriculture has the potential to improve nutrition outcomes, and we need to ensure that agricultural policies and programmes prioritize nutrition,” he explained.
For Qu, it is also necessary to scale up interventions that address the underlying causes of malnutrition such as promoting breastfeeding, improving access to safe drinking water and improving hygiene and sanitation.
The FAO Director-General asked African leaders to promote accountability for results by setting targets, tracking progress and being transparent about achievements and challenges, as well as to strengthen the capacity of national nutrition systems to collect, analyze and use data.
“Addressing malnutrition requires a multi-sectoral approach, and we need to work together to achieve our collective targets by leveraging the expertise, resources, and networks of all stakeholders to make effective progress in addressing malnutrition,” he underscored, urging to strengthen partnerships and collaboration.
Pius Iligwe/Editor
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