MULTISECTORAL PARTNERSHIP TO PROMOTE MORE NUTRITIOUS CROPS AND FOODS www.nutritiousfoodfair.org
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CONTENT Overview
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The Fair
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Smart Mother
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Panel Discussions
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Capacity Building
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Exhibition
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Interviews
10
Competitions
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Comments
15
Photo-Splash
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Participation
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Organizers
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12 6
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OVERVIEW Background
Micronutrients, particularly Vitamin A, Iron and Zinc, are extremely important for good health. The body and brain require them to function optimally (World Health Organization, Federal Ministry of Health). Vitamin A is important for healthy skin, good vision, strong immune system and has been proven to prevent diarrhea in children. Iron enhances memory in children, supports healthy pregnancy, prevents tiredness and nutritional anemia. Zinc is an essential mineral that stimulates the activity of over 100 enzymes in the body, supporting healthy growth and development during childhood and pregnancy stages. It is estimated that Nigeria looses over US$1.5 billion in GDP to vitamin and mineral deficiencies (Nigeria: Nutrition at a glance, World Bank).
Current efforts to address micronutrient deficiency through supplementation and food fortification have been successful but largely insufficient to reach millions of Nigerians in the rural areas who depend on the foods they produce for survival. Biofortification is a complementary approach that increases the density of micronutrients in crops through conventional means thus making commonly consumed staple foods more nutritious. The nutritious food basket in Nigeria includes 6 varieties of vitamin A cassava, 6 varieties of vitamin A maize, 2 varieties of high iron sorghum and 2 varieties of orange fleshed sweet potatoes. In the near future, iron-rich pearl millet, iron-rich cowpea, vitamin A plantain and banana will be available to strengthen the nutritious food basket. These biofortified varieties are conventionally bred, and are as high yielding as other varieties commonly grown by farmers.
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THE
FAIR
APPRECIATION
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The multistakeholder participation at the 2016 edition points to a growing consensus among stakeholders on the growing impact of the Fair...
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t indeed was a great outing at the second edition of the Nutritious Food Fair (NFF). It is refreshing to know that we put out a call for this edition and the turnout was overwhelming. With over 5,000 participants at the fair this year, we are elated that people are getting involved in not just speaking with one voice on the need to eat more nutritious foods, but also committing to ensure that the lives of rural poor households change for the better. The NFF embodies these beliefs and that is why we thank everyone who shares the vision of the Fair. NFF is indeed taking its rightful place in the health and agriculture space. This is not unexpected because it keys into the clamour for policies and interventions that respond not just to food security needs but also the rising challenge of nutrition security. Engagements at this fair have rightly focused on the production and consumption of more nutritious foods. Given that over 100 children die every hour in Nigeria due to reasons linked to malnutrition, it is only proper that organizations working on nutrition-sensitive interventions to address the menace be brought under one roof to compare notes and forge partnerships to better respond to the rising challenges collectively. We have seen that happen at the Fair and we hope the deliberations would equip participants with new ideas about how to better address the hurdles ahead. The participation by different sectors of the relevant public and private entities gladdens one. We are excited to have our partners from different sectors in the nutritious crops and foods value chain, ranging from public, non-governmental and private sector actors, meet to sharpen rough edges and engage one another on the way forward. We are pleased, also, by the brilliance and comportment shown by the school children who participated in this year’s NutriQuiz competition. They are true champions of biofortification. The Smart Mother Initiative has equipped female participants to become nutrition advocates. There is no denying that the NFF is waxing strong. The multi-stakeholder participation at the 2016 edition points to a growing consensus among stakeholders on the growing impact of the Fair in identifying and tackling perennial challenges of micronutrient malnutrition through innovative ideas and interventions. We have shown the international community how agriculture is being utilized for better health, inclusive economic growth and tackling poverty in Nigeria. We intend to strengthen this as we gear up for the 2017 edition which is billed to hold from November 1 to 3 in Enugu where we expect to have over 10,000 participants HarvestPlus appreciates our partners in the public and private sectors for their moral and financial support. The Cross River State Government was a wonderful host. Our primary donors, including Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, DFID-UK and USAID, are, as always, our pride. Thanks. See you in Enugu!
Paul Ilona Country Manager, HarvestPlus Nigeria p.ilona@cgiar.org
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About the fair HarvestPlus conceived the Nutritious Food Fair as an umbrella advocacy platform to build and sustain nutrition sensitive intervention and conversations in Nigeria. The Fair assembles key stakeholders in the agriculture, health, education, civil society and government circles to chart a course for food and nutrition security, with a keen focus on empowering women and youths, promoting enterprise and improving livelihoods of the rural and urban poor population. The first edition of the fair held in Abuja in November 2015. The event attracted over 3,000 persons and was declared open by the Vice President, Yemi Osibanjo. In 2016, the second edition of the food fair with the theme Multisectoral Partnerships to Promote More Nutritious Foods held at the Calabar International Convention Centre in Calabar, to consolidate the impact made in the first edition. Its objectives include to galvanize efforts to increase demand and consumption of nutritious foods; promote and encourage investment in the nutritious food sector; strengthen partnerships and linkages and stimulate government’s policy support for nutrition interventions. The food fair was attended by representatives of the Federal government, including the Ministries of Agriculture, Health, Budget and National Planning; the National Directorate of Employment (NDE); legislators at the national and state levels; civil society organizations; community-based organizations; international and national research institutions, development agencies; food manufacturers; movie actors; nutrition professionals and farmers’ associations, among others. About 5,000 persons participated at the Fair. The event featured discussion panels by stakeholders in Nigeria’s health, agriculture, education, media and development sectors, who gathered to brainstorm on the issues around the food we eat, how they are produced and need to opt for more nutritious options; working models and approaches to tackling malnutrition, as well as solutions to challenges besetting the production and consumption of nutritious foods in Nigeria. The 2017 edition of the Fair would hold from November 1 to 3 in Enugu State. Expected to build on the successes of the first two editions, it would focus on strengthening the role of women in nutrition and food security, among other objectives. www.nutritiousfoodfair.org
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HARVESTPLUS SMART Mother Initiative Launched To Promote Nutrition in Homes
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o encourage and build capacities of mothers to influence the consumption of more nutritious foods in homes across the country, HarvestPlus launched the Smart Mother Initiative at the second edition of Nutritious Food Fair, which held in Calabar. The initiative is anchored on the need to enlist mothers as advocates for nutritious foods in homes, especially as they make and influence dietary choices. It is intended that the intervention would ultimately improve diets and promote healthy living in urban and rural households. The initiative was launched at the Fair by the wife of the Cross River State Governor and Founder of Mediatrix Foundation, Dr. Mrs. Linda Ayade, who was represented by the deputy governor’s wife, Mrs. Omotunde Esu. In her remarks, Mrs. Ayade said that it was troubling that over one hundred children die every hour in Nigeria as a result of malnutrition, adding that the move to engage mothers in the state and across the country to address the situation was welcome and would greatly change the story in no distant time. “This statistic is totally unacceptable. Mothers should therefore get involved in tackling malnutrition,” she said. Mrs. Ayade and other key women leaders in the state present at the Fair were consequently endorsed as ambassadors of the Smart Mother Initiative and charged to take the message to mothers across the country.
Smart Mother Initiative launched by the wife of the Deputy Governor of Cross River State
Presentation of Smart Mother Initiative plague to Mrs Omotude Esu by Member House of Reps. Honourable Linus Okorie
Decoration of Dr. Betta Edu as Smart Mother Initiative Ambassador Cross section of women set to be decorated as Smart Mother Initiative Ambassadors
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PANEL DISCUSSIONS
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anel discussions were an integral part of the event. It was an avenue for key stakeholders to review challenges, solutions and success stories recorded in the course of promoting the production and consumption of nutritious foods across the country. Key sessions at the event include those anchored by HarvestPlus, Dfid MADE program, Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Business Network, Rotary Club and Nollywood. The SUN Business Network focused on how Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs) and private firms are working to promote nutritious foods. The Rotary club’s session focused on the interest of the club to engage young members to go into production and marketing of biofortified crops and foods. The enterprise session featured speakers who spoke of the viable business opportunities in the biofortified crops and food value chain. The Nollywood session featured celebrities from Nigeria’s film industry, Nollywood, who spoke on their readiness to partner development agencies to communicate nutrition-sensitive messages in movies.
Panel Discussion: Business opportunities in the nutritious food sector
Panel Discussion: Mainstreaming nutrition messages in movies, television and radio programs
Panel Discussion: Financing Opportunities and technology Adoption Panel Discussion: Sun Business Network session on Nutrition
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CAPACITY BUILDING
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s part of activities aimed at building capacities along the nutritious crops and foods value chain, HarvestPlus trained youths and women, who attended the fair, on improved agronomic practices and processing techniques to produce innovative products from biofortified crops. The training session, according to HarvestPlus Country Manager, Dr. Paul Ilona, was to equip the locals and other participants with the right skill set to tap into the numerous opportunities in the biofortified crops and foods value chain. The sessions focused on equipping participants with standard best practices for the production of existing and new products from vitamin A cassava, including combobits, cassarita, cassmoi; animal feed as well as tutorials on seed system production technology, and enterprise development through the Agroshop, HarvestPlus online market platform.
CATO Foods training participants on production of vitamin A cassava confectionary
Gari processing equipment showcase from Adebash Engineering at the Nutritious Food Fair
Women demostrate best practices in garri processing during the event Showcase of animal feed made from vitamin A cassava peels
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EXHIBITION The exhibition featured displays by research institutes, development agencies and private businesses. Some of the notable exhibitors include the DFID-Market Development in the Niger Delta (MADE), Nestle, the International Potato Center (CIP), the National Root Crops Research Institute Umudike (NRCRI), SUN Business Network and the Federal College of Agriculture, Akure,(FECA).
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INTERVIEWS ODEDINA: NIGERIANS NOW BETTER INFORMED TO ADOPT NUTRITIOUS FOODS Dr. Adeola Odedina is the Provost, Federal College of Agriculture, Akure, (FECA), Ondo State. In this interview, he shares his views on the just concluded Nutritious Food Fair. What is your impression about the fair this year? It is not surprising that two serious issues that affect humans, namely health and wealth, pulled such an unprecedented crowd at this event. At the mention of those two issues, people would be interested because they would want to know about their health and how they can make money. I think that has played out very well for this event. You can see people from every sector here, from students, to government officials, to business women, to farmers and many others. They have come here to learn about these two problems that confront humanity. They want to eat well and also make money. These two issues are embedded in the nutritious food fair. There is business opportunity here and there is health opportunity. I am very happy as a partner to be part of this event.
Dr. Adeola Odedina Provost, Federal College of Agriculture, Akure, (FECA), Ondo State
What is the impact of the engagements here on the production and consumption of nutritious foods in Nigeria? We are moving to an era where the people would be talking to policy makers and telling them the focus of their policies. With what HarvestPlus and partners have done, I don’t think anyone can talk about agriculture in the country without people asking them what they are doing about biofortification. I think that is what we would have in the long run. It is what I call a demand-driven approach to policymaking. People are going to demand nutritious options from whoever wants to do anything that relates to agriculture and development. From policymakers, to those who want to engage youths in agriculture to the rural service providers, marketers, and development workers, people are going to be demanding nutritious foods. That’s the impact we will see.
How do you think this event would impact on farmers, who are coming from the villages? First, it shows that this is not a gathering of government officials. It is a gathering of business, private sector people, and farmers as well. These are the people who are responding to the needs of the rural dwellers. Most of the people here equally work in rural communities,
so they know the needs and can respond to them. I see private sector people who have attachment with the rural economy taking up nutritious foods to respond to the demands from the people.
The NutriQuiz competition at this event tests the knowledge of school children on agriculture and nutrition; what impact do you think this would have on the children, young people’s interest in agriculture and the fortune of the agricultural sector in the long run? The gesture is appreciated. We are beginning to stimulate interest of school children and school leavers on agriculture. Eventually, some of them would choose to study agriculture at the tertiary level. Some percentage of the students would go into service provision and get to work as extension agents in the long run. They would advise their parents and even farmers. If this interest is developed right from secondary school, it would stimulate them to think of becoming well-informed actors in agriculture in the future, either by owing farms or working with agricultural service institutions.
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INTERVIEWS OYEKU: NFF TO ENCOURAGE NUTRITION SENSITIVE POLICIES Dr. Dele Oyeku is the Director for Extension and Linkages, Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO). He discusses his experience at the Nutritious Food Fair (NFF) with HarvestPlus. How do you think this Fair would impact the consumption of nutritious foods in Nigeria? This is going to have a tremendous impact for nutritious foods in Nigeria. It is an opportunity to create largescale awareness. We consume food, but don’t really know if they are nutritious or not, especially for people in the rural areas. This annual fair would create a lot of awareness and help people make right choices about nutritious foods.
How do you think this would translate to gains for the agricultural sector? It would have a lot of impact for agriculture in Nigeria. It is going to promote the development of industries that process nutritious foods. Once the farmers know that there are companies that would pick up commodities that are more nutritious than what they were planting before, they would do the needful. It would strengthen the value chain and ensure that nutritious foods move from the farm, to factories, to markets and then to tables at home.
The Fair seeks to promote partnerships and build consensus around policies for more nutritious foods, what would be the ramifications of the deliberations for the Nigerian economy? There are so many people representing different organizations, including Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), international development organizations, national organizations and universities. I strongly believe that we would develop a proposition to guide government on food and nutrition security policies. I also believe that the top politicians here, especially those from the federal legislature, would take the deliberations back to their colleagues to influence legislation. We also expect that the consciousness that we have built in the participants at the fair would influence their food choices. If they heed to the advices given during the sessions, we expect, in the long run, to see the impact on the cognitive abilities and health of children and adults, so that that they can better contribute to nation building.
Dr. Dele Oyeku Director for Extension and Linkages, Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO).
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COMPETITION
NUTRIQUIZ OBJECTIVE: HarvestPlus organized the second edition of the NutriQuiz competition at the Nutritious Food Fair to test the knowledge of secondary school students on nutrition. Government Girls College, Big Qua Town, Calabar, won the competition, defeating other participants from Benue, Cross River, Imo and Akwa Ibom States.
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This event and the NutriQuiz, particularly, would change the perception of the children about agriculture. They are also learning important lessons on nutrition which they will take back to their schools and homes Okon Bassey, Teacher St. Patrick College
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COMPETITION
COOKING COMPETITION OBJECTIVE: The cooking competition was organized by HarvestPlus to test the ability of participants to make wholesome meals from biofortified crops.
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This has given people the opportunity to explore the many food options in biofortified crops. It is revealing. Thanks to HarvestPlus Sr. Matilda Inyang
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COMPETITION
DANCING COMPETITION OBJECTIVE: HarvestPlus organized the dancing competition to engage young talents at the Nutritious Food Fair, challenging them to develop songs and dance concepts that promote nutritious foods.
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We appreciate the organisers of this event, HarvestPlus, for the opportunity to use our talent to promote a cause like nutrition
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COMMENTS
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“I commend HarvestPlus for this event. I also congratulate the former CEO of HarvestPlus, Howarth Bouis on winning the World Food Prize for pioneering work on biofortification. My office is fully committed to promoting the cause of biofortification, and this event is another milestone in that direction” Winifred Ochimabo Representive, Minister of Agriculture
“I am excited about what HarvestPlus is doing and how they are bringing everybody together to have a conversation on nutritious foods. This is supporting government’s efforts to tackle malnutrition from the policy-making angle” Honourable Linus Okorie Federal House of Representive member & Chairman, House Committee on Agricultural Institutions & Colleges
“It is troubling that over one hundred children die every hour in Nigeria as a result of malnutrition. The move to engage mothers in the state and across the country to address the situation is welcome and would greatly change the story in no distant time” Mrs. Linda Ayade First lady, Cross River State represented by the wife of the Deputy Governor
“The Nutritious Food Fair sensitizes mothers on how to be change agents in their homes and communities. It is a laudable idea.” Dr. Betta Edu D.G, Cross River State Primary Health Care Agency
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COMMENTS “At the ministry, we are especially happy that we are collaborating with HarvestPlus in promoting biofortification in Nigeria, which has ensured that crops are enriched with essential micronutrients.” John Uruakpa Deputy Dir., Micronutrient Deficiency Control Unit, Federal Ministry of Health
“The Fair was important in addressing malnutrition in Nigeria, as it brings together critical stakeholders in the health and agriculture sectors to tackle the pressing issues around food as well as agriculture, as they affect nutrition.” Uduak Igbeka National Coordinator, SUN Business Network
“Our aim is to have a rotary action group on nutritious food, which would be made up of Rotarians that are going to be investing and supporting investment in the production of nutritious food” Dr. Jude Ohanele Executive Director Development Dynamics & Rotarian
“We are excited to have won the competition. We have never been this happy before” Government Girls College, Calabar Winners of NutriQuiz 2016
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The Nutritious Food Fair closed with a gala night, which featured performances from comedians, artists and dancers. The event was opportunity for participants to unwind and network for increased collaboration and linkages. The next host state, Enugu, was unveiled at the gala night.
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PARTICIPATION The 2016 edition of the Nutritious Food Fair (NFF) played host to stakeholders from diverse sectors and industries in Nigeria. The spread of the participants points to the growing influence of NFF in stimulating conversations around food and nutrition security as well as engaging policymakers to proffer innovative approaches aimed at tackling hunger and poverty in the country. Below is a chart showing the spread of participants, who registered and attended the Fair:
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HOWARTH BOUIS 2016 World Food Prize Laureate
Dr. Howarth “Howdy” Bouis, won for his pioneering work in addressing the global problem of micronutrient deficiencies, known as hidden hunger, through biofortification.
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BEVERLY POSTMA Chief Executive Officer, HarvestPlus
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ORGANIZERS Paul Ilona
Country Director HarvestPlus Nigeria
Ifeoma Okonkwo Events and Partnership Co-ordinator HarvestPlus Nigeria
Fidelis Duker
Project Director FAD Production/Nollywood
Segun Arinze
Project Ambassador Nollywood
Gerald Umeze
Monitoring, Learning & Action Specialist HarvestPlus Nigeria
Emmanuel Etim Co-ordinator LOC Cross River
Victor Ekeleme Branding & Design HarvestPlus Nigeria
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For Partnership and Sponsorship Ifeoma Okonkwo, HarvestPlus Events Officer Phone: +234 7039390279 Email: i.okonkwo@cgiar.org www.HarvestPlus.org |www.nutritiousfoodfair.org LIKE - FOLLOW - SHARE @harvestplus_ng
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