The Ladies, Media and Change (WOMEC) on Thursday launched a campaign to advocate good diet within the nation.
The 18-month “The Nourish Ghana: Advocating for elevated management to fight malnutrition” mission seeks to create a platform for dialogue to strengthen national coverage motion on diet by advocating improve in management, funding and accountability.
It additionally seeks to make use of the media to disseminate data on points throughout all sectors.
Talking at a stakeholder have interactionment in Accra, the Govt Director of WOMEC, Dr Charity Binka, mentioned malnutrition was nonetheless a significant downside for each public well being and growth crises within the nation.
She famous {that a} current knowledge from Ghana Demographic well being survey 2022 indicated that 18 per cent of kids below 5 years have been stunted, six per cent have been wasted whereas 12 per cent have been underweight.
Additionally, she said malnutrition price the nation roughly 6.4 per cent of its Gross Home Product (GDP) yearly.
These figures, Dr Binka mentioned demanded pressing motion to handle the state of affairs, including that, “if we don’t act decisively, we danger compromising the well being and productiveness of future generations.”
“By means of collaborative have interactionment with parliamentarians, policymakers, civil society, the media, and neighborhood stakeholders, we hope to boost consciousness, drive coverage change, and improve investments in high-impact diet interventions,” she underscored.
Dr Binka highlighted that the stakeholder engagement was a name to motion to debate methods, share concepts, and construct partnerships that can enhance diet outcomes for all.
“We will even mirror on the outcomes of the 2025 Diet for Development (NG) Summit and discover how Ghana can leverage these to speed up progress,” the Govt Director mentioned.
She urged the federal government to allocate funding for diet particularly in its price range to enhance diet within the nation.
“Nonetheless, authorities has dedicated $6 million in its price range 2026 for diet on the Diet For Development Summit (N4G) which isn’t dangerous however we will do higher, Madagascar which is a smaller counattempt has dedicated 5 per cent of it nationwide price range which is nice,” she disclosed.
The Principal Planning Analyst of Nationwide Growth Planning Fee, Nii-Odoi Odotei, mentioned the joint dedication to addressing malnutrition speaks not solely to enhancing public well being but additionally to reinforcing the nationwide development agenda.
He mentioned malnutrition belowmined the longer term, contributing to important financial losses and hindering sustainable progress of the nation.
He famous that the nation was confronted with a posh diet panorama, marked by the coexistence of undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and weight problems throughout the identical populations, households, and people regardless of its important strides in addressing meals insecurity and malnutrition.
These challenges, he mentioned demanded pressing motion, significantly as financial vulnerability, shifting meals environments, and climate-related threats additional restrict entry to nutritious meals for susceptible populations.
“The Nourish Ghana initiative is a well timed and strategic response to our nation’s urgent diet challenges. With proof presenting its profound influence on little one well being and financial productiveness, malnutrition poses an impediment to attaining a resilient and prosperous Ghana,” he added
BY CECILIA YADA LAGBA
