UVAS LAHORE 1 IMPROVING FOOD SECURITY IN PAKISTAN Munawar Hussain Program Manager Punjab & AJK The Micronutrient Initiative

FOOD SECURITY UVAS LAHORE 2 Availability of nutritious food Food Access Food Use FOOD SECURITY

UVAS LAHORE 3 The main determinant of Food Security is Malnutrition Low income families are more prone to Food Insecurity (Nutrition Policy Guidance notes, 2013) Food Insecurity principally connected to Food Insecurity principally connected to o Low production due to famine/natural disaster (eg. Flood) Although, Famine instigate hunger and food insecurity, but famine is atypical concern o Low socio-economic status o Increasing prices of food

UVAS LAHORE Few Among Several Consequences of Food Insecurity 4 Induce considerable economic cost Reduced lifetime productivity Expanding/ Elevating poverty Slow economic development Resource deprivation Food Insecurity and hunger are social & moral problems that embarrass to our global society

Malnutrition Reduces Productivity!!!! UVAS LAHORE 5 Reduced Productivity Pathway Cost inefficiencies: (e.g. illness, deaths) Direct links: Decreased physical productivity Indirect links: Impaired cognitive development, schooling and productivity

Nutritional Food Insecurity Status UVAS LAHORE 6 Indicator NNS NNS Wasting % (Low Weight for Height)12%15% 2. Stunting% (Low Height for Age)31%44% 3. Under Weight% (Low Weight for Age)42%32% 4. Anemia (Children)51%63% 5. Anemia (Pregnant women)29%51% 6. Iodine Deficiency (Children)63%36% 7. Iodine Deficiency (Women)76%36% 8. Vitamin A Def (Children)13%54% 9. Vitamin A Def (Non-pregnant women)6%42%

Nutrition Throughout Life Cycle UVAS LAHORE 7

UVAS LAHORE 8 Factors Prompting Food Insecurity 1 Incompetent Supply Chain (Farm to Fork) 2 ↑ food demand due to ↑ population 3 ↑ food demand due to life style modification (↑ food loss) 4 Temporary climate changes 5 Price instabilities 6 Unsafe food and less human resource capacity 7 Inadequate production (not utilizing all resources) Food Insecurity Factors Inducing

Copenhagen Consensus & Food Security UVAS LAHORE 9 The Doha development agenda – Trade Micronutrient fortification (iron and iodine) – Malnutrition Expanded immunization coverage for children – Diseases Agricultural R&D on micronutrients – Malnutrition Deworming and nutrition programs at school – Malnutrition Lowering the price of schooling – Education Increase and improve girls’ schooling – Women Micronutrient supplements (vitamin A & zinc) – MalnutritionCommunity-based nutrition promotion – Malnutrition Top 10 investments for advancing global welfare

Article 38 (d) ensures provision of basic necessities of life including food. “The State shall provide basic necessities of life, such as food, clothing, housing, education and medical relief, for all citizens, irrespective of sex, caste, creed or race, as are permanently or temporarily unable to earn their livelihood on account of infirmity, sickness or unemployment” Food Security: Constitution of Pakistan UVAS LAHORE 10

Future Challenges to reduce Food Insecurity UVAS LAHORE 11 ↑ food production to feed a growing population ↑ food production to modest surpluses for export ↑ crop productivity using lesser land & water resources Ensure a rapid growth of national income Attain macro-economic & Micro-economic stability Effective employment of growing labor force Securing improvement in distributive justice Reduction in rural poverty Both supply-side and demand-side issues need to be addressed to ease food insecurity

Future Challenges to reduce Food Insecurity UVAS LAHORE 12 “Food security is possible well into the future. Science provides the tools, agricultural research the modality, intellectual insight the design of the next revolutions that will help smallholder farmers improve their square yard of earth, and help the world to keep pace with population growth” (Austin, nd)

Multi-sectoral Approach in addressing Food Insecurity UVAS LAHORE 13 Food Security AgricultureEducationFoodWASHHealth Social Protection

Policy Options: Water, Sanitation and Hygiene UVAS LAHORE 14 Safe Environment through total sanitation and hygiene promotion Solid waste management Applying “Pakistan Total Sanitation Policy” Equitable access to water provisions Public awareness programs on nutrition by HUD & PHED, Health, Education

Policy Options: Agriculture UVAS LAHORE 15 Increase productivity by shifting from traditional to value added agriculture Fortification of grain crops Subsidies on micronutrient rich plant varieties to attract farmers Address geographic disparities Breeding programs for cereals Enhancement of Fertilizer use efficacy Targeted Subsidies for poor farmers Promotion of International Standards and Accreditations

Policy Options: Food UVAS LAHORE 16 Reduction of Post harvest loses Targeted subsidies on food to poor and food insecure population Mandatory fortification of wheat flour with iron and folic acid and its enforcement. Establish specialized Food Authorities as in Punjab

Policy Options- Education UVAS LAHORE 17 Nutrition and life skills counseling and weekly iron tablets for all adolescent girls (in and out of school) Ethnic specific orientation and training of school teachers on nutrition Provision of healthy nutritious food in school canteens Include nutrition, health, hygiene education modules in schools Annual Nutrition days in schools

Suggestions…!!! UVAS LAHORE 18 ? ? ?

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