… Nigeria loses an estimated $1.5bn in Gross Domestic Product annually due to diminished productivity.

Experts in the health sector have called on the Federal Government of Nigeria to implement food fortification guidelines to help reduce the rate of hunger, malnutrition, and lack of nutrients in the food system of the country.

They also noted that fortified foods could help prevent micronutrient deficiencies, amidst malnutrition ravaging the country. This, they also said, has aided the impairment of physical and mental growth of Nigerians, especially children under the age of five.

The experts spoke during a  two-day advocacy workshop on improving food fortification compliance and promotion of workforce nutrition, organized for the media, civil society organizations, experts, and stakeholders by the Civil Society Legislative and Advocacy Centre in collaboration with the Nigerian Economic Summit Group and eHealth Africa in Lagos.

Speaking at the workshop, a nutrition expert from the Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Dr. Patricia Ukegbu lamented that the non-implementation of the food fortification guidelines had worsened the nutritional status of Nigerians and contributed to the growth of a malnourished population.

Dr. Ukegbu expressed concern that the prevalence of malnutrition in Nigeria resulted in the country being ranked number one in Africa and two in the world in terms of the number of children malnourished.

She stressed that the malnutrition cycle must be broken at the family level as it is capable of transforming into a national emergency, which reduces the productivity of the nation.

She said, “Nigeria, according to UNICEF, loses an estimated $1.5bn in Gross Domestic Product annually due to diminished productivity.

“But there are solutions that can alleviate the burden on hardworking men, women, and families. Fortifying staple foods with essential vitamins and minerals, for instance, is one of the most effective ways of improving a population’s nutrition.

“If the mother has a compromised nutritional status, she may die before giving birth but if she survives it, the child will be malnourished. This will affect the growth of the child and also reduce his mental capacity.

“This will be a generational cycle of malnutrition, thereby reducing the productive capacity of the nation as a whole.”

According to the World Health Organization, food fortification is the practice of deliberately increasing the content of one or more micronutrients (i.e., vitamins and minerals) in a food or condiment to improve the nutritional quality of the food supply and provide a public health benefit with minimal risk to health.

The global health organisation stressed that micronutrient deficiencies, policies, and implementation programmes for fortification need to consider an alignment with policies for the reduction of diet-related non-communicable diseases.

Another expert, Dr. Omolola Okunlola, while reviewing the food fortification policy of 2019, said Nigeria is facing a food security crisis, which has also contributed to the high prevalence of malnutrition.

She noted that the food crisis faced by the country had weakened the global economy with Nigeria feeling the heat.

The expert said any food can be fortified, urging the country’s regulatory authorities to implement the regulations on food fortification.

She maintained that there is a need for adequate and sustainable funding of the regulatory authorities to implement guidelines on food fortification.

A representative of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, Dr. Oluwatoyin Oyekenu while speaking on advocacy for food fortification, said improved advocacy can help to ensure that food fortification and workforce nutrition are prioritised and implemented.

She insisted that it is criminal to have over 10 million children suffering from stunted growth.

“A lot of people are frustrated because they cannot reach their potential due to malnutrition. The world programme estimates that over 40 million Nigerians are food insecure with many lacking access to nutritious food,” Dr. Oyekenu.

Earlier in his remarks, the Executive Director of CISLAC, Auwal Rafsanjani, said the workshop was a fallout of the non-implementation of the 2019 food fortification regulation, noting that food producers are not complying with the required specifications.

Rafsanjani, who was represented by the Project Lead, Lovelyn Agbor-Gabriel said the non-implementation of the regulation has negative consequences on the nutritional status of Nigerians with grave health and socio-economic consequences.

He also noted that lack of awareness and poverty is impeding the demand for fortified food among poor households.

The executive director added that the objective of the workshop was to increase compliance with food fortification policy by food producers through improved legislative oversight and supervision of relevant agencies of government and to advocate for budgetary allocation and fund releases for relevant government agencies.

Source: Punch