FSC in Dialog: Role of policy and nutrition education in mitigation of undernutrition in Ethiopia

Prof. Dr. Henok Kurabachew
Visiting Professor at Food Security Center (FSC),Institute of Biological Chemistry and Nutrition (140)
University of Hohenheim, Germany

Ethiopia has a population of about 94 million and is the second-most populous country in Sub-Saharan Africa. The poor nutritional status of children and women are known to be a serious problem in Ethiopia. It is known that child undernutrition has long-term negative effects on people’s lives, most notably in health, education, and productivity, and seriously affects the human capital of the country on which the economy relies. To mitigate this problem, the Ethiopian government has launched the National Nutrition Plan (NNP) which outlines some of the key efforts that must be undertaken to address the causes and effects of malnutrition and provides a basis for future nutrition policy. Furthermore, additional effort is undergoing in nutrition education Prof. Dr. Henok Kurabachew Visiting Professor at Food Security Center (FSC), Institute of Biological Chemistry and Nutrition (140) University of Hohenheim, Germany which will fill the gap of trained manpower in the country in nutritional sciences and which also gives clear knowledge of malnutrition to the community. In the last decade, Ethiopia has made significant strides in addressing nutrition issues. Moreover, community sensitization and awareness-raising activities on nutrition is being implemented. Still, much more effort is required to address and mitigate undernutrition problem through agriculture-nutrition linkage focused research and extensive nutrition education in a multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral approach.

This FSC in Dialog event was held at the University of Hohenheim (HS 21 / Otto-Sander-Straße 5 / Universität Hohenheim) on December 10, 2015.

Download slides of the presentation.