Improving Nutrition for Poor Mothers and Children in Asian Countries in Transition

closed

The Project aims to improve the nutrition status, and physical and mental capacity of the poor by piloting an umbrella regional program for delivering micronutrient fortified salt and wheat flour to the populations in the ACT region. The Project will particularly target poor women of reproductive age and children. It will (i) focus support on the poor currently afflicted or at risk (ii) pilot related capacity building processes for establishing a regional network of marketing, distribution, and rules of trade and (iii) demonstrate the efficacy of a regional approach to solving a common nutrition problem that is depressing both human and economic development in the region. The Project will have four major components: (i) A Roundtable Conference. This will bring together representatives from ACT public health services, private sector (federations of flour millers and salt producers), NGOs that focus on women and children, representatives of external assistance agencies and senior central and local government officials. The Roundtable will seek policy commitment and agreement on the essential requirements for fortifying salt and flour, upgrading regulatory and trade policies, enriching food for the poor, conducting population surveillance and food quality monitoring, and identifying potential follow up activities including larger scale investment projects. (ii) Fortification of salt and flour. In selected pilot sites in poor areas, ACT governments will work with flour millers, bakers, and salt producers to upgrade processing and marketing technology (private sector financed) to use micronutrient enriched salt and wheat flour. The Project will finance a one year supply of fortificants (potassium iodate and an iron based premix) for salt and flour consumed by the poor. Both private companies and state owned companies will be eligible for assistance if they intend to continue fortifying products after the Project. (iii) Support for regulatory authorities. Regulatory authorities will develop food testing instruments and surveys for monitoring the enriched food program for mothers and children. (iv) Social marketing to create demand by the poor. This activity will be managed by NGOs to promote public awareness and acceptance of micronutrient enriched salt and wheat flour, targeting poor consumers.