ReSAKSS Annual Conference

18–20 October, 2016. Accra, Ghana. The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), in partnership with the African Union Commission (AUC), convened the 2016 ReSAKSS Annual Conference to promote review and dialogue on the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) implementation agenda among state and nonstate actors.

This year’s conference centered on nutrition, an area that has gained increasing attention and momentum across Africa. Recent AUC initiatives include:

• the CAADP Nutrition Initiative, 
• the Africa Region Nutrition Strategy 2015–2025 (ARNS 2015–2025), 
• the Africa Task Force on Food and Nutrition Development, the African Union (AU) 2014–2017 Strategic Plan, 
• the African Union Agenda 2063, 
• and the 2014 Malabo Declaration. 
• In addition, 37 out of 57 countries involved in the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement are African. 
• The CAADP process has included efforts by countries—led by the NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency (NPCA), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
  
  (FAO), and other development partners—to mainstream nutrition in national agriculture and food security investment plans. 
• And country-level SUN and CAADP teams are expected to work collaboratively toward improved nutrition.

The conference allowed policymakers, researchers, advocacy groups, farmers’ organizations, the private sector, development partners, and other key stakeholders from within and outside of Africa to

• discuss issues and recommendations raised in the 2015 ATOR—the official CAADP monitoring and evaluation report;
• review progress in implementing the CAADP agenda and in particular progress toward achieving key CAADP goals and targets as well as in creating capacities and adopting effective modalities for evidence-based policy planning and implementation; and
• evaluate progress and challenges in establishing and operationalizing effective country Strategic Analysis and Knowledge Support System (SAKSS) platforms and mutual accountability platforms through agriculture joint sector reviews (JSRs).

Extract of the programme

Keynote Address: Scaling Up Nutrition Action for Africa: Where Are We and What Challenges Need To Be Addressed To Accelerate Momentum, Lawrence Haddad, Executive Director, Global Alliance for Nutrition (GAIN), United Kingdom.

The Role of Mycotoxin Contamination on Nutrition: The Aflatoxin Story. Amare Ayalew, Program Manager, Partnership for Aflatoxin Control in Africa (PACA), Ethiopia

Role of Biofortification as Part of a More Diverse Diet in Africa: Progress, Challenges and Opportunities, Bho Mudyahoto, Senior Monitoring, Learning and Evaluation Specialist, Harvest Plus, Uganda.

Related:
ACHIEVING A NUTRITIONREVOLUTION FORAFRICA:The Road to Healthier Dietsand Optimal Nutrition. (October 2016, 282 pages)

• The 2015 Annual Trends and Outlook Report (ATOR) examines the current status of nutrition in Africa, including progress in meeting Malabo nutrition targets, and emphasizes the importance of dietary quality and diversity. It also addresses how the agricultural sector can ensure that food systems deliver more nutritious and nutrient dense foods.
• The ATOR emphasizes the importance of strengthening human and institutional capacities for mainstreaming nutrition, wider implementation of programs and coordinating policies and programs across sectors more efficiently. Including nutrition indicators in national monitoring, and evaluation systems is essential for holding governments accountable.

The Global Nutrition Report (June 2016, 180 pages) is an independent and comprehensive annual review of the state of the world’s nutrition.

It is a multipartner initiative that holds a mirror up to our successes and failures at meeting intergovernmental nutrition targets. It documents progress on commitments made on the global stage, and it recommends actions to accelerate that progress. The Global Nutrition Report aims to be a beacon, providing examples of change and identifying opportunities for action. This year’s report focuses on the theme of making—and measuring— SMART commitments to nutrition and identifying what it will take to end malnutrition in all its forms by 2030.

The 2016 Report was funded through the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition & Health, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, the European Commission, the Governments of Canada, Germany, and the Netherlands, Irish Aid, UK Department for International Development (DFID), US Agency for International Development (USAID), and 1,000 Days.

The Report is delivered by an Independent Expert Group and guided at a strategic level by aStakeholder Group, whose members also reviewed the Report. The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) oversees the production and dissemination of the Report, with the support of a virtual Secretariat.

Related:

6 October 2016. Washington DC. Keynote Address by Kanayo Nwanze (IFAD) at the IFPRI Special Event, "Accelerating Progress in Ending Hunger and Undernutrition" 

In the keynote address, Kanayo Nwanze, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), highlighted the “cruel paradox” that many families that feed the world on small farms are the ones who go hungry. He raised key questions for national governments and development organizations to consider as they seek to scale up interventions to end hunger: “Are we paying enough attention to smallholders? Are we engaging them in finding solutions to end hunger and undernutrition? And if not, why not?” 

Noting that support for smallholders lays the foundation for a world free from hunger, Nwanze proposed four value propositions for accelerating progress toward this goal: 

1. Build inclusive “public-private-producer partnerships” that involve smallholders; 
2. Invest in rural infrastructure including storage facilities, roads, energy, and social services; 
3. Create inclusive policies from community to national levels to enable vulnerable groups to participate; 
4. Improve measurement of results to account not just for higher yields but also for reduced poverty, improved nutrition, and healthy ecosystems.