group, Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), has launched campaign to improve the availability and consumption of
safe and nutritious foods in Nigeria.
Its Country Director, Mr Micheal Ojo, said during the launch of online nutrition media roundtable that half of the people in the country could not afford a healthy diet.
He said that the alliance was targeting major improvements to food systems, resulting in diverse and healthier diets for vulnerable people.
Ojo added that the major problem was people do not understanding the importance of nutritious diet.
He noted that “we need the media to help us to properly educate the public on eating nutritious foods.
“We want to collaborate with the media to enlighten the public about improved nutrition and balanced diet for good health.”
The country director said GAIN realised that things were just not moving as fast as everybody was hoping that it would move regarding
hunger and malnutrition.
He explained that it was important for the media to report nutrition in the language the ordinary people would understand.
“Food that is not safe is not food at all in the first instance because it harms consumers.
“It is also very important that the information is packaged in bites and sizes that are easy to pick up and digest,’’ Ojo said.
Also, Mrs Joyce Akpata, the Head of Policy and Advocacy at GAIN, said that the capacity of the media would be built to be
able to understand and then educate the public, especially in rural areas.
Akpata said that the belief that only children needed nutrition was not true as both adults and infant needed to have a healthy life.
“We will need to involve the experts to build the capacity of the media for a better result,” she said.
Launched at the UN in 2002 to tackle human sufferings caused by malnutrition, GAIN is working with governments, businesses and
Civil Society Organisations to transform food systems, deliver nutritious foods for all people, especially the most vulnerable.
(NAN)