Mohammed Shosanya
The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), in collaboration with eHealth Africa and the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), have commenced the process for the development of an Integrated Food Fortification Compliance Framework designed to address micronutrient deficiencies in Nigeria.
Delivering his welcome address at a webinar event, the Chief Executive Officer of the NESG, Mr Laoye Jaiyeola,expressed that malnutrition deficiencies are of great concern to the NESG, with 20.5 million new babies and 14.6% having low weight at birth and one out of five children experiencing stunted growth in Nigeria.
He said COVID-19 pandemic further exposed the economic vulnerabilities of African countries as 155 million people have been pushed into extreme poverty globally.
He added:”In Nigeria and the rest of Sub-saharan Africa, micronutrient deficiencies are common among the people due to over-farmed, depleted and nutrient-lacking soils, low nitrogen in most African soils, high soil acidity, infestation of crops by pests and diseases, and the adverse effects of climate change.
He advocated the need for stakeholders to continually ramp up food fortification to ensure that people don’t just eat but eat well in a way that reduces micronutrient deficiencies.
Speaking,Senior Technical Specialist for Quality and Safety, Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), Mr. David Morgan, stated that micronutrient deficiency in Nigeria is significant and the national food consumption survey shows there is a massive burden of waste in children in Nigeria, with vitamin A deficiency and anaemia being more prevalent among children.
He noted that some of the challenges related to food fortification compliance include an absence of clear communication of requirements from regulators for smaller industries, the cost of food fortification, monitoring of production and access to trusted, reliable and affordable testing for regulators and producers.
He said that dialogue and improved communication are straightforward ways to improving Nigeria’s food fortification systems.
Dr Adeyemi Opeoluwa,
Deputy Director of Scientific and Head of Business Development at the Institute of Public Analysts of Nigeria, said there was need to tackle poverty to improve the country’s microeconomic indices, noting the need for support and collaboration among government, the private sector and institutes to improve on these indices.
He implored all stakeholders to consider Nigeria’s political and cultural dimensions when enacting policies.
The founding Director of Praisegate Services and Consult, Dr Victor Ajieroh, stated that with a population of 200 million, with conservative estimates, only 100 million people can have access to fortified foods through oil, salt, sugar and other food vehicles.
He explained that by ensuring more people have access to fortified foods, the health of the nation would improve.
He reiterated the importance of the private sector in ensuring that their products conform with government-set fortification standards, noting that food brands should embody values and aspirations that inspire change.
He also stressed the need for philanthropists to do more through reaching out to the rural dwellers as well as continually meet government standards by helping to create an atmosphere of collaboration and positive conversations from policy, infrastructure and trade points of view that can help address the issues of micronutrient deficiencies in Nigeria.
He emphasized the import of governance and digital and retail innovation in curbing the challenges associated with food fortification compliance through innovative procurement mechanisms to solve supply chain problems and improve Nigeria’s food fortification ecosystem.
Mr Auwal Ibrahim Rafsanjani, Executive Director of CISLAC, said poverty is deep-rooted in the country and irrespective of the quantity of food, if the proper nutrients are not consumed, the problems of malnutrition would persist.
Rafsanjani, who was represented by Mr. Muritala Muhammed noted that sensitisation and awareness creation is important, including effective collaborations among all stakeholders to ensure that malnutrition is effectively tackled.