Govt inaugurates committee to tackle malnutrition, others
THE Federal Government has intensified efforts aimed at meeting the nutritional needs of all Nigerians, as part of plans to tackle malnutrition and the spread of preventable diseases in the country.
One of such moves is the strengthening of collaboration and partnership with Harvestplus, which will enhance the nutritional value of major staples through biofortification with essential micronutrients, especially zinc, iron, and vitamin A.
The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security ( FMAFS), Mr. Temitope Fashedemi, who disclosed this at the Biofortification Thought Leadership Series in Lagos, which preceded the inauguration of National Biofortification Steering Committee, said the ministry is aware of the challenges faced in meeting nutritional needs of the country’s growing population.
“The ministry is aware of the challenges faced in meeting with nutritional needs of our growing population, but is optimistic of the opportunities available. This event is valuable in guiding our policies and interventions aimed at combating malnutrition and ensuring that every Nigerian has access to safe nutrition and sufficient food all- year- round.
“Food fortification and biofortification of staple crops are well established strategies for addressing micronutrient deficiencies,” said the Permanent Secretary.
Fashedemi harped on the importance of biofortification in maintaining the health of children, women and the vulnerable populations.
The Harvestplus Nigeria Country Manager, Dr. Yusuf Dollah, noted that biofortification was already benefiting over 100 million consumers with the potential to cover the entire country.
Dollah explained that the engagement meeting was in line with ongoing effort to have the country recognise the essence of biofortification and accord it a priority in its policies, emphasising the need for coordination to achieve maximum results in the programme.
“A major challenge we have in the agriculture sector is value- chain addition and we do not want the same thing to happen to the biofortification value chain: Hence, the decision of FMAFS to work closely with Harvestplus and the seed council to coordinate and reduce duplication in the field as much as possible.
“We are coordinating with the Nigeria Agricultural Seed Council ( NASC), who have appointed a desk officer for biofortification within the council. We are also working with all Agricultural Development Programmes in each state of the project ( Kano, Kaduna, Gombe and Jigawa states).”
Dollah explained the technology involved in biofortification, saying, “it is a process of conventional breeding, though through selection from our local varieties, we do our crosses, so that at the end of the day, we are able to have offsprings that have some exceptional characteristics, which will make our crops fit for agriculture. Now, if we say we want a crop to be fit for agriculture, that means the variety must be high yielding, able to withstand climatic challenges and that the variety must be able to also deliver nutrients.”
The CEO of Harvestplus, Arun Baral, who joined virtually, commended the country for making efforts to nourish her citizens, as he promised to visit in March in furtherance of the programme.
Baral, who stressed the need for partnerships and coordination of the ecosystem, maintained that their target is to nourish at least one billion of the three billion people worldwide who cannot afford a healthy diet.