International Symposium on Sustainable Food Systems for Healthy Diets and Improved Nutrition

1-2 December 2016.  International Symposium on Sustainable Food Systems for Healthy Diets and Improved Nutrition.

The Symposium concentrated on three sub-themes that together provide a comprehensive picture of food systems and their actionable entry points for promoting healthy diets:

1. Supply side policies and measures for increasing access to healthy diets: to exchange views and country examples on improving nutrition by sustainable agriculture diversification, reducing food waste and improving post-harvest management, food processing for improved nutrition value, product reformulation, bio fortification, food safety and ways to facilitate market access were discussed. A particular attention was given to forests to identify the challenges and opportunities for exploring this important and nutritious food resource. 
2. Demand side policies and measures for increasing access and empowering consumers to choose healthy diets: successful examples of nutrition-sensitive social protection, nutrition education and awareness raising, regulations on food labelling and advertisement, and strategies to empower women as key-food system drivers were showcased.
3. Measures to strengthen accountability, resilience, and equity within the food system: to discuss and showcase concrete examples of linking data to policy and programme design, monitoring and evaluation, to exchange views on ways to shape comprehensive multi-sector and multi-stakeholders policies effectively. This sub-theme showcased country examples of maintaining functioning food systems in crisis, including areas affected by climate change

Extracts of the programme See the full programme (16 pages)

• Underutilized nutritious food resources: the case of forest foods in Cameroon, by Cécile Ndjebet, President of the African Women’s Network for Community Management of Forests, the Republic of Cameroon
• Biodiverse agroecological systems for traditional nutritious foods in Mali, by Alimata Traoré, President of Convergence des Femmes Rurales pour la Souveraineté Alimentaire (COFERSA), the Republic of Mali. Biofortification for nutritious crops production in Uganda, by Bho Mudyahoto, Senior Monitoring, Learning and Evaluation Specialist, Harvest Plus/IFPRI. 
• Tracking affordability/price of diverse, nutritious foods in Ghana, by John Nortey, Statistics Research and Information Directorate, Ministry of Food and Agriculture, the Republic of Ghana.
• Effective platforms and coalitions for healthy diets: what concrete results? by Sarah Lilian Mshiu, Senior Economist/Nutrition Focal Person, Office of the Prime Minister, the United Republic of Tanzania.
• Food fortification policies and programs for improved nutrition in Senegal, by Abdoulaye Ka, National Coordinator of Senegal’s cellule for fighting malnutrition, Office of the Prime Minister, the Republic of Senegal.
• Integrating nutrition education in agriculture extension services in Kenya by Teresa Tumwet, Head of Nutrition, Ministry of Agriculture – Home Economics Department, the Republic of Kenya
• Food system resilience in economic/food price crisis in Uganda, by Stephen Biribonwa, Senior Agriculture Officer, Nutrition and Home Economics, Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, the Republic of Uganda.
• Food Security and Nutrition and the global control and eradication of Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), by Bouna Diop, Animal Health Division, FAO. 
• Engaging effectively with the private sector actors in the food systems for healthy diets: the marketplace for nutritious foods in Mozambique, by Katia Santos Dias, Director of Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) Mozambique, the Republic of Mozambique
• Cash transfers for improved food security and diet diversity: the lessons from Lesotho, by Ntitia Tuoane, Director of Field Services a.i., Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, the Kingdom of Lesotho. 
• Public procurement from family farmers for improved food basket in Malawi, by Albert Saka, Senior Officer, Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, the Republic of Malawi. 
• Empowering women as key drivers of food system change Overview by Lindiwe Sibanda, Chief Executive Officer, Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN), the Republic of South Africa
• Engaging women and men as agents of change in agriculture and nutrition in sub-Saharan Africa, by Christiane Monsieur, Dimitra Project Coordinator, FAO

Video coverage:
First session of Sub-theme 1: Supply Side Policies and Measures for Diversifying Food Production and for Increasing Availability and Affodability of Nutritious Foods for Healthy Diets.

Interview with Anna Lartey, Director FAO of Nutrition and Food Systems Division
Published on 28 Nov 2016
Hidden hunger indicates a diet poor in essential macronutrients, capablel of damaging people’s health and productivity. Anna Lartey underlines the need for action to be taken at national level to improve nutrition and ensure access to healthy diets for all.