Ghana: CSOs Forum on SUN Holds High-Level Policy Debate on Scaling Up Nutrition

The CSOs forum on Scaling Up Nutrition in Ghana held a high-level and extremely well-attended policy debate at the British Council in Accra, Ghana on 5th June. The event was chaired by Dr. Edith Tetteh, Vice Chairperson, National Development Planning Commission and National SUN Focal Person.

Many high-level participants attended, including several Ghanaian parliamentarians; the Director-General, Ghana Health Service Dr. Appiah Denkyirah; representatives from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture; country representatives from REACH, FAO, USAID; and over twenty national and international civil society organisations working on Nutrition. It also received some excellent media coverage, including on Ghana Television, TV3, the Citizen, Accra Times, and Peace FM.

Member of Parliament for Akrofuom and Co-Chair of the Ghana Parliamentarians Against Hunger and Malnutrition, Honourable Kwabena Appiah Pinkrah attended the event. He told participants that the consequence of malnutrition is so devastating that failure to act decisively to reverse the trend means that they as politicians and policy makers are condemning the vast majority of infants and young children into premature death and avoidable diseases.

Mrs. Mary Mpereh from the National Development Planning Commission spoke of the need for each sector to play its role, and the importance of Ghana’s Cross-Sectoral Planning Group (CSPG) on Nutrition for coordinating. Nana Ayim Poakwah, Coordinator of Ghana Civil Society Organizations for SUN spoke at the event about the need to mobilize public support for action to scale up nutrition, and stated that the Government of Ghana needed to develop and deliver proven nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions, based on a sound, effective legal, policy and institutional framework within a three-year period.

Global Day of Action

In the run up to the Nutrition for Growth: Beating Hunger through Business and Science meeting on the 8th June, SUN Civil Society Alliances have take part in campaign actions around the world.

These actions highlighted to political leaders the importance of investing in nutrition, and were part of efforts happening all around the world as part of the Global Day of Action,

Scaling up Nutrition Civil Society Alliances led campaign efforts in Bangladesh, Ghana, Nepal, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia – holding round tables with politicians, public rallies, concerts and debates – all with the aim of asking their own national governments to do what’s necessary to tackle hunger and malnutrition. READ MORE ▶