Nutrition sensitive agriculture, key to fight malnutrition, King Letsie III of Lesotho says
28 August 2017, Addis Ababa – The nutrition sensitive agriculture programme being implemented with the support of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is said to be crucial in making a qualitative difference in the lives of the farming communities in Ethiopia.
There is no doubt that because of the nutrition sensitive agriculture that is being practiced in this community, your children grow up healthier – physically and mentally, said King Letsie III of Lesotho, speaking to a local community who benefit from a nutrition-sensitive agriculture project in Southern Ethiopia.
About 84 percent of the Ethiopian population relies on agriculture for livelihoods. Over the past couple of decades, the Government of Ethiopia has embarked on a number of broad-based economic growth and poverty reduction policies, strategies and programmes. However, 40 percent of children suffer from stunting – too short for their ages.
As a result, the national nutrition policy landscape shifted from food-security-based responses to periodic crises to a multi-sectoral approach to address chronic malnutrition. FAO is working with the Government of Ethiopia to incorporate nutrition into agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectoral policies with the aim of improving their contribution to the fight against hunger and eliminate stunting by 2030.
As a Special Ambassador of FAO for Nutrition, King Letsie supports with increasing awareness of the issues of nutrition and malnutrition, and encourages key stakeholders to investment in nutrition.
As I carry out my assignment as Ambassador of FAO, he said, I will use what I have seen here today as a real and living example of what good nutrition can do and contribute in improving the lives of ordinary people.
The existing link between nutrition and agriculture is crucial. Through the “Growth and Transformation Plan”, the “National Nutrition Programme”, and the high political sensitization for nutrition in the agricultural sector, the Government of Ethiopia has proven its deep understanding of this link and its steady commitment to actually make it work in the country.
“Your children will attend school more regularly and perform better in their schoolwork,” he added. “They will grow up as productive citizens of this country and will be able to contribute to the economic and social growth of Ethiopia.”
The promotion of healthy diets and nutrition must be placed at the heart of agricultural policies and programmes, said Amadou Allahoury, FAO Representative to Ethiopia, nutrition should be incorporated in all aspects of the value chain, if we are to achieve ZeroHunger.
Nutrition-sensitive agriculture, is an approach that seeks to maximize agriculture’s contribution to nutrition. If rural farmers differentiated the production of their commodities also based on nutrition needs, agriculture would better contribute to improved food access for poor households, as well as to their food security, nutrition and economic status.
FAO supports local communities to grow nutrition-rich food to have nutritious food. Schools and children play a great role in increasing awareness of good nutrition in their communities. The nutrition-sensitive agriculture project works with school clubs by setting up demonstration sites and provision of training and vegetable seeds. A member of a community said, “We didn’t have enough awareness of the benefit of balanced diet before. After we received training and agricultural inputs, we started to grow different vegetables and prepare diversified food for my family.”
Confirming his commitment, King Letsie said, “I will continue to pledge the support for FAO in helping communities and the Government of Ethiopia in promoting nutrition sensitive agriculture so that within a short period of time we will be able to overcome the problems of malnutrition not only in Ethiopia but throughout the continent.”
For further information, Contact:
Tamiru Legesse – [email protected]
National Communication Officer, FAO Ethiopia