Ghanaian universities join forces to mainstream nutrition-sensitive approaches into academic curricula
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The University of Ghana has endorsed the integration of a new course on nutrition-sensitive agriculture and food systems into the master’s degree and doctoral academic curricula of the College of Basic and Applied Sciences (CBAS) https://www.cbas.ug.edu.gh/.
The three-credit graduate course Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture and Food Systems is one of the recent achievements among all efforts led by Ghanaian universities, in collaboration with FAO and its partners, to strengthen students’ knowledge and skills on nutrition-sensitive approaches.
The endorsement of the new course is, indeed, part of the activities developed under FAO’s project Strengthening capacities for nutrition -sensitive food systems through a multistakeholder approach (involving private sector, civil society organizations and academia) http://www.fao.org/3/cb1156en/cb1156en.pdf. Funded by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) of Japan, the project is implemented in Ghana, Kenya and Viet Nam; it targets nutrition-oriented academic institutions and small and medium-sized enterprises operating in the agrifood sector, and aims to support capacity building for improving nutrition and promoting healthy diets.
The recent endorsement of the course is the result of a consultative process that took place during a Training of Trainers (ToT) held between 3 and 15 April, which involved 18 participants from the University of Ghana, the University of Cape-Coast, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, the University of Allied Health Sciences, University of Development Studies, and the Women in Agriculture Development Directorate of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Ghana. The purpose of the ToT was to introduce all participants to nutrition-sensitive food system (NSFS) approaches and present academic materials and publications prepared by the University of Ghana, which could prove useful for other universities’ courses in the area of NSFS. On the occasion of the ToT, the University of Ghana sought also to collect inputs on the Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture and Food Systems course, as well as to discuss its integration into the academic curricula of the universities involved.
The outcomes of the consultation will greatly benefit all academic institutions and stakeholders involved in the process to strengthen local capacities and knowledge; among the key beneficiaries, a large number of university students who will be equipped with knowledge, competencies and critical thinking that will support them in overcoming the nutrition challenges of their country.
Along these lines, starting next semester, the course CBAS 600/700 will be available to Master’s Degree and Ph.D. students at the College of Basic and Applied Sciences of the University of Ghana. Furthermore,
several universities are planning on integrating the content of the CBAS 600/700 course into existing ones and, in four years, to enrich undergraduate curricula with a full Introductory course on Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture and Food Systems.