In a move to address the worsening malnutrition rate in Africa’s most populous country, HarvestPlus is driving the production and consumption of Vitamin A cassava and maize in the country.
HarvestPlus with funding and support from the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has partnered with the government’s Agricultural Development Program (ADP) through the Women in Agriculture (WIA) Extension Program to scale the production and consumption of Vitamin A cassava and maize to improve household nutrition and income in Niger and Kaduna States.
The WIA initiative is a medium for the transfer of agricultural and nutritional proven innovations and technologies in production, processing, marketing, consumption, and nutrition.
It is done through the dissemination of agricultural and nutritional information to stakeholders across the food value chains and households in Niger and Kaduna states.
Halima Abubakar, deputy head, WIA at the Niger State Agricultural and Mechanization Development Authority (NAMDA) said the initiative has helped build the capacity of women extension agents to promote healthier food choices among rural women using locally available crops, making many become ambassadors of biofortification.
“This strategy believes that when you reach out to a woman you have reached out to a whole family and to an extent the community at large,” she said at a recent WIA training in Niger state across 194 LGAs.
Halima said that the training is of the essence at this point when many households are struggling to put food on the table and women who have the job of preparing household meals look up to women extension agents in their local communities for advice.
She applauded AGRA, HarvestPlus, and other partners for advocating for the eradication of hidden hunger which is a major malnutrition challenge in the country.
She added that illiteracy also serves as a barrier to accepting innovations. “We are hoping that the officers will be well inspired and be well-equipped to step down the training at the zones and community levels.”
Also speaking, Hajiya Asamau, nutrition officer, Niger State Ministry of Health stated that the training organized for the women’s extension agents shows that the country is ready to get it right in addressing malnutrition.
She emphasized that tackling malnutrition is a collective effort while calling for training for health workers in her ministry.
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Asamau urged women to become entrepreneurs, as she emphasized that increased promotion, utilization, and consumption of Vitamin A maize and cassava under the biofortification program can become a huge way for them to increase their incomes.
“The training is a way forward and a welcome development in the state. Women should consider the option of healthy nutrition to seize these opportunities, as they are cost-effective at the household and community level to tackle malnutrition.”
Similarly, Olatundun Kalejaiye, nutrition and post-harvest officer at HarvestPlus was also a facilitator for the training programme said women had the opportunity to learn about the commercialisation of biofortified foods and its relevance to addressing micronutrient deficiency, including complementary foods for children.
Kalejaiye highlighted the aim of the training, which was to empower and equip the WIA women with the knowledge to train other women on how to get income, as they process and sell vitamin A maize and cassava foods and also make use of these recipes at the household level to improve on the nutritional quality of their family meals.
Kalejaiye explained that food-based approaches are the best ways to tackle malnutrition and that biofortification complements other approaches like dietary diversification, supplementation and food fortification.
According to her, WIA has learnt how to make nutritious food choices incorporating all of these methods.
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