African Union leaders call for additional funding to counter childhood malnutrition

19 Feb 2024 --- Leaders of African Union (AU) member states and representatives of the African Leaders for Nutrition initiative convened last Friday at a round table in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to discuss the need for additional financing and policies to tackle malnutrition as 86 million children on the continent continue to suffer from some form of the condition.

The event, “AU high-level round table: Addressing malnutrition, catalyzing Africa’s transformation through enhanced multi-sectoral investments,” was held on the sidelines of the 37th annual ordinary session of the Assembly of the AU.

“Our commitment as leaders remains a pivotal pillar in driving policy and legislative actions to tackle malnutrition,” states Samuel Ntsokoane Matekane, prime minister of Lesotho. “Member states need to adopt stronger policies and increase financing for nutrition to turn the tide of malnutrition and secure the future of our children.”

“We have a duty and a responsibility to reduce malnutrition and stunting in Africa by 40% by 2025 — just one year from now,”Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank points out. “It is therefore critical that heads of state and governments tackle malnutrition.”

Farayi Zimudzi, representative of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Ethiopia, adds that there are more stunted children in Africa today than there were 20 years ago and that stunting statistics are on the rise on the continent. 

Malnutrition alleviation goals
The objectives outlined in the AU’s Africa Regional Nutrition Strategy 2015—2025 and adopted by all African countries and the World Health Assembly in 2011 dictate a 40% reduction in the number of children under five years of age who are stunted, a 50% reduction of anemia in women of childbearing age and a 30% reduction of low birth weight.

The objectives further strive to prevent overweight among children under five, to increase breastfeeding to at least 50% of infants under six months and to reduce childhood wasting to less than 5%, by 2025. 

At present, of the 86 million African children living with malnutrition, 63 million are stunted — resulting from chronic undernutrition — 10 million are overweight and three million are wasted, meaning they have lower weight for their height as a result of short-term inadequate nutrition. 

The African Development Bank’s Adesina, also a co-founder of African Leaders for Nutrition, asserts that malnutrition presents a long-term, multifaceted issue for the nations grappling with it. Malnourished children cannot realize their full educational potential and they are less productive at work later on in life, thus diminishing their overall ability to build their societies and economies. 

“The number of undernourished people in Africa is projected to increase to 52%, making a focus on transforming food systems an urgent priority,” Adesina warns, further pointing to the World Food Programme’s Cost of Hunger Studies in Africa that find malnutrition has far-reaching implications on societal progress.

The Ethiopian government’s 2015 Seqota Declaration  commits to ending hunger, achieving food security, improving nutrition and promoting sustainable agriculture.Alleviation progress
The African Leaders for Nutrition high-level platform for political engagement aims to attract innovative investments toward nutrition and food security. 

One of the promising policy initiatives highlighted during the panel discussions is the Ethiopian government’s 2015 Seqota Declaration, which renewed the nation’s commitment to ending hunger, achieving food security, improving nutrition and promoting sustainable agriculture. The declaration further commits the government to ending stunting in children under two by 2030. 

“The African Development Bank’s support for the Seqota Declaration has had a dramatic impact in terms of (preventing) illness and death, educational performance and inadequate labor productivity,” comments Sahle-Work Zewde, president of Ethiopia. 

Sierra Leone’s vice president, Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh, highlighted the country’s dedicated budget line for nutrition, encouraging the support of multilateral agencies. 

“Every dollar invested in nutrition can yield a return of US$16. Tackling malnutrition makes economic sense,” adds FAO’s Zimudzi. The round table was supported by the African Union’s development partners Win Philanthropy, Nutrition International and FAO. 

To facilitate nutrition monitoring and policymaking, FAO recently introduced a new addition to its FAOSTAT website, offering harmonized food and nutrition statistics covering nutrient availability in 186 countries. 

Last month, UNICEF released its new guidelines for practitioners working in nutrition and social work, aiming to improve cohesion and cooperation between the two sectors in order to decrease poverty-related malnutrition worldwide.

By Milana Nikolova