The African Union Policy Environment Toward Enabling Action for Nutrition in Africa

Akoto Osei, Heifer International

Changing Policy Environment • MDG to SDG• Equity and inclusiveness• Evidence based solutions• Emphasis on results and impact• A more holistic approach• Emphasis on First 1,000 days of life• Poverty and hunger driven agenda• Need for increased resources

What defines enabling environment for nutrition?• Gillespie S, et al: Lancet 2013; 382: 552–69:

• A call for more research of what defines enabling environments for nutrition

• Consensus on these factors : • Politics and Governance• Knowledge and Evidence• Capacity and Resources

Politics and Governance – AU’s Commitment and Leadership• Increasing political commitment &

leadership on nutrition

Politics and Governance – AU’s Strategies & Policies

• Aspiration 1: A Prosperous Africa, based on Inclusive Growth & Sustainable Development.

• Goal 1: “A high standard of living, quality of life and wellbeing for All citizens”

• Goal 3: “A healthy and well-nourished citizens”

• Goal 5: “Modern agriculture for increased production, productivity & value addition”

Politics and Governance – AU’s Strategies & Policies

• Targets of Aspiration 1 includes:

• Reduce proportion of the population who suffer from hunger by at least 80%

• Reduce stunting in children to 10% and underweight to 5%.

Politics and Governance – AU’s Strategies Policies• 2014 Declared as Year of Agriculture, Food

Security and Nutrition• January 2014: AU Adoption of a Common

Africa Position (CAP) on the post-2015 development agenda (SDG);

• June 2014: Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihood;

The Malabo Declaration

Investment Finance in Agriculture

Recommitment to the CAADP

Process

Resilience & risk

managementEnding Hunger

by 2025

Markets & regional trade

Agriculture for 50% of Africa’s

poverty reduction

Mutual Accountability

Politics and Governance – AU’s Frameworks• Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development

Programme (CAADP)• Results by 2025:

• tangible impact of agriculture on socio-economic wellbeing of Africans – wealth creation; poverty alleviation; food & nutrition security; productive safety nets; and ecosystems and social system resilience.

Politics and Governance – AU’s Strategies Policies• June 2014: Declaration on Nutrition Security

for inclusive economic Growth and Sustainable Development in Africa

• End Hunger by 2025• Reduce child stunting to 10% and

underweight to 5% by 2025 and in particular, focusing on the first 1000 Days as the only window of opportunity

June 2015: Endorsed Africa’s Regional Nutrition Strategy (ARNS)

• Similar targets as the WHA65.6• Emphasize the scaling up of the nutrition

specific and nutrition sensitive interventions• Stress multi-sector collaboration for better

nutrition

Politics and Governance –Advocacy & Coordination• July 2010: Endorsed October 30th of each year

as Africa’s Day for Food and Nutrition Security

• January 2014 endorsed His Majesty King Letsie III of the Kingdom of Lesotho as the Africa’s Nutrition Champion

• January 2016: Endorsed March 1 of each year as Africa’s Day for School Feeding

Politics and Governance – Advocacy & Coordination• African Task Force on Food and Nutrition

Development (ATFFND)• CAADP Partnership Platform • PACA Partnership Platform• Continental SPS Committee• ReSAKSS• AU’s active role in other nutrition & agriculture

events

Knowledge and Evidence for Nutrition – AU’s Activities• Cost of Hunger in

Africa Studies

Knowledge and Evidence for Nutrition – AU’s Activities• Sustaining CAADP Momentum Exercise,

undertaken in 2012-13• AU-EU Pan-African Research Programme on

Agriculture, Nutrition and Food Security - Ongoing

• NEPAD-FAO led food and nutrition information and knowledge sharing platform - Ongoing

Capacity and Resources for Nutrition • Limited capacity for nutrition (in-service & pre-

service)

Existing nutrition degree programs in West Africa

Moving forward • More actions to sustain the current political

commitments & momentum on nutrition• Actions needed to translate the nutrition

policies to concrete programs – i.e. scale up both the direct and indirect interventions

• Continue to include nutrition activities in the Action Plans of CAADP and other Frameworks

• Increase resources, including specific funding allocation for nutrition within budgets of AU and other RECs

Moving forward• Strengthen nutrition capacity across Africa • Strengthen data systems and information flow• Coordination and harmonization• Much needs to be done on obesity, overweight

and nutrition related non-communicable diseases