Nutritious meals will reduce disease burden — Nabbanja
May 15, 2024
“If people eat nutritious food, live in a clean environment, and do physical exercises, the disease burden on the health system would be less,” Nabbanja said.
Robinah Nabbanja, Prime Minister during the Third National Nutrition Forum organised by the Office of the Prime Minister. (Photos by Maria Wamala)
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Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja has urged parents to prioritise giving their children nutritious meals to reduce the burden of malnutrition in the country.
“Uganda is gifted by nature. We have fertile soils that even without land one can put the fertile soil in the sac and do urban farming. God gives us rain in excess that we can even harvest enough water for irrigation. However, some of our children are malnourished,” she says.
“Nutrition is not just about filling stomachs; it's about nourishing bodies, minds, and futures. It's about laying the foundation for healthy, productive lives,” Nabbanja says, adding that 75% of the disease burden, including malnutrition in Uganda is preventable.
“If people eat nutritious food, live in a clean environment, and do physical exercises, the disease burden on the health system would be less,” she said.
Barriers to attaining SDGs
UNICEF Representative and chairperson of Nutrition Development Partners Munir Safieldin said malnutrition poses a significant barrier to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), affecting not only health but also education, economic prosperity, and societal well-being.
“While Uganda has made commendable strides in economic growth and poverty reduction, progress in reducing malnutrition has been slower. Chronic undernutrition remains a critical challenge, with approximately one in four children under five years suffering from stunting,” he said.
In addition, the quality of diets for children under two years old remains a pressing concern, with only a fraction receiving the recommended nutrition.
Nabbanja said the Uganda Cost of Hunger in Africa Study of 2013 suggests that reducing child undernutrition by half by 2025 could result in an annual average saving of Ugandan shillings 176 billion for the country.
Therefore, investing in programmes that address child undernutrition and stunting levels will improve the health and well-being of Uganda's children and generate significant economic benefits for the country, she said.
Uganda put in place the Uganda Nutrition Action Plan (UNAP II), a government-led effort to address the nutritional needs of all population groups, particularly the most vulnerable, she said, adding that it is a multi-sectoral approach aligned with Uganda’s broader development goals and reflects the country’s determination to leaving no one behind.
According to Nabbanja, the Government has initiated the Parish Development Model (PDM) programme as a transformative approach aimed at enhancing household incomes and overall quality of life for Ugandans.
“Embedded within PDM is a strategic link to the Uganda Nutrition Action Plan, which underscores the importance of nutrition in national development,” she said.
She added that the PDM positions the Parish as a pivotal unit for local development, responsible for coordinating various services and initiatives, including those related to production, marketing, social services, and financial support.
“By providing incentives and support to smallholder farmers, the PDM seeks to boost household incomes and improve productivity,” Nabbanja said, adding that scaling up of innovative extension models such as nucleus farmers ensures that the PDM aligns with the objectives of the UNAP that focus on fostering an environment conducive to improved nutrition outcomes across Uganda.
The remarks were made during the five-day Third National Nutrition Forum organised by the Office of the Prime Minister with funding from UNICEF, EU, NORAD, and Irish AID to discuss food and nutrition challenges.
Themed: "Unlocking Nutrition's Potential: Accelerating Multi-Sectoral Actions and Strategic Investments for Enhanced Nutrition Security, Nabbanja said the forum aims to collect views to shape government policy actions, inform the government’s next steps in addressing malnutrition in the next Nutrition Action Plan and the Fourth National Development Plan.
Primary health care state minister Margarate Muhanga said the health ministry developed strategies and rolled out interventions to address Uganda Nutrition Action Plan II objectives.
“These include schemes of service for nutrition cadres; however, she said that the ministry needs more nutrition cadres. We also developed a comprehensive health sector nutrition strategy. We want to digitalize nutrition information systems to enhance data capture. Government has also committed to funding nutrition supplies,” Muhanga said,
PSFU support to fight malnutrition
Godfrey Mutyaba from the Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) said to reduce malnutrition, local manufacturers need the Government to build their capacity to enable them to manufacture fortified and therapeutic foods.
“The private sector is fighting malnutrition through fortification. However, we are challenged because we are relying on imported fotificants,” he said.
He added that, since 2011 when manufactures started fortifying foods, 'the country has had no local manufacturer of fortificants thus manufacturers rely on the imported fortificants which are expensive'.
“You can imagine, a business model in the fortification of wheat flour and maize flour costs shillings 1.4 billion monthly. Fortification of cooking oil costs shillings 2.5 billion. If you make a quick calculation, every month shillings four billion is spent fortifying,” Mutyaba said, imploring the Government to rescue the situation if committed to fighting malnutrition.
Additionally, he urged the government to fast-track the school feeding policy. “Once we have this policy, demand for fortified products and quality products shall be in place. Once the demand is there, then we shall also realize the value for investment as far as fortification is concerned,” he said this will increase the production of fortified foods.
In addition, “In the country today, we do not have a laboratory that tests Vitamin A, Folic Acid, and some other micronutrients,” Mutyaba said, urging the government to do something.
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