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JAKF and Partners Hold Workshop On Nutrition

Chief Executive Officer of the John A. Kufuor Foundation Prof. Baffour Agyeman-Duah is calling for more collaborative efforts to address nutrition and food related challenges in the country.

According to a 2016 United Nations’ report on the cost of hunger in Africa, up to 30 percent of children under five in Ghana are malnourished and 24 percent of all child mortality cases in the country are associated with under nutrition.

Prof. Agyeman-Duah says more concerted efforts are needed to deal with such nutrition related issues. He was speaking at a one day workshop organized by the Global Panel on Agriculture and Food System for Nutrition in partnership with the John A. Kufuor Foundation and the Ministry of Planning in Accra.

The panel which is co-chaired by chairman of the John A. Kufuor Foundation, former President John Agyekum Kufuor, is an independent international group of leaders working to help governments in low and middle income countries develop evidence based policies that make high quality diets affordable and accessible to all. The panel works across food, agriculture and nutrition, bridging gaps and examining food systems in a wider socio-political and economic context.

The meeting brought together technical representatives from selected government ministries and agencies, civil society organisations, NGOs and private sector to identify nutrition-relevant policy options and actions for Ghana, using a food system policy tool developed by the Global panel. The Food Systems Policy tool seeks to address poor nutrition through the lens of diet quality and food systems.

The workshop was a follow up event to an inter-Ministerial meeting in March 2019 where the Minister of Planning endorsed a “consensus statement” acknowledging the value of a ‘food systems approach’ to delivering healthy diets and better nutrition.

Representatives from the National Development Planning Commission, Food and Drugs Authority, Ghana Standard Authority, World Food Program – Ghana, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Food and Agriculture Organization, among others, all participated in the workshop.

Dr. Mensah Abrampah who represented the Minister of Planning expressed confidence Ghana is making good strides in improving food and nutrition. He however called for more action to help people appreciate the essence of eating a well-balanced diet instead of focusing on filling the tummy. “It is time to move from feeding to nourishing,” he stated.

Director of the Global Panel, Prof. Sandy Thomas expressed appreciation to the John A. Kufuor Foundation and the participants for their contributions and proposals to solving issues within the nutrition landscape.