Research Gaps in Food and Nutrition Security Across Africa
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There are several research gaps in food and nutrition security across Africa according to the document. Key gaps include a substantial duplication of research effort, research not being adequately linked to local priorities, and research being driven more by external parties rather than the local policy and research community. Additionally, there is limited evidence on nutrition issues like women's and adolescent's nutrition, dietary behaviors, and how to effectively scale up proven nutrition-sensitive interventions. Addressing these gaps will require better coordination of research efforts, a focus on understanding differences at subnational levels, and leadership to manage cross-sectoral food and nutrition security research within countries.
Research Gaps in Food and Nutrition Security Across Africa
- 1. Research Gaps in Food and Nutrition Security Across Africa Richmond Aryeetey University of Ghana School of Public Health
- 2. 3 Billion Poor Quality Diets 3-16% GDP loss Undernutrition: Africa & Asia 3 – 6 million cases Nigeria (2011-2030) Key challenges of Food & Nutrition Security (IFPRI, 2016; Global Panel, 2016) Generate new evidence Manage and Use existing evidence
- 3. Assumptions about research Research Evidence Better decisions
- 4. Broader evidence landscape Case studies in Ghanaian context
- 5. Evidence Synthesis Evidence landscape Utilization for Decision making New Research (applied) New research (basic) Strengthen quality Formalize evidence use Share evidence Promote use of evidence Demand Existing research Data & findings generate manage translate use
- 6. “Level of evidence” pyramid GOLDEN STANDARD
- 7. GAPS in EVIDENCE Landscape –Substantial duplication of research effort –Research not adequately linked with local priorities –Research was driven by external parties –Research and policy community not linked Lachat et al 2014, Holdsworth et al, 2014)
- 8. Identifying nutrition problems, agenda-setting, commitment-building, and priority-setting at all levels Coordination, alignment and collaboration in assessments, analytics, planning, implementation and evaluation Accessing information on potential nutrition-specific interventions, nutrition sensitive actions, programs, policies, and implementation innovations Adopting, adapting and designing actions and innovations Detailed implementation planning, guidelines, commodities, training Mobilizing human, financial and organizational resources Initiating, managing and expanding implementation Monitoring, evaluating, learning, adapting, sustaining and/or terminating Implementation Capacities Procedures, Practices, Policies Implementation Knowledge Portfolio Evidence, Information, Guidelines, Experience The Roles of Implementation Knowledge and Capacities (in the Implementation Spectrum) Credit: David Pelletier
- 9. Food and Nutrition Research landscape in Ghana • Micronutrient deficiencies • Epidemiology of undernutrition focused on children • Limited attention to nutrition of women and adolescents Focus on undernutrition • Focused on epidemiology of overweight/obesity • Limited evidence on diets, food environment & behaviors • Experiments testing interventions are rare Emerging attention on over-nutrition • Focused on social safety nets and nutrition-sensitive food security • Limited evidence on harnessing poverty alleviation programs to address nutrition Emerging attention to nutrition sensitive research
- 10. NUTRITIONLINKS 1. Gaps identified in Nutrition Links Project • How can effective strategies in nutrition sensitive agriculture work in one setting but not in another? Replicating success • What strategies are needed to promote inter-institutional planning and programming between health and agriculture? Delivery mechanisms • Integration of data systems across Agriculture, health, nutrition, livelihoods? • Quality of routine data • Strenthening use District Data systems
- 11. 2. Priority research gaps in Nutrition in Ghana Behavioural issues • Understanding traditional diets • Socio-cultural influences on diet and nutrition • Social and behaviour change • Dynamics of complementary feeding Implementation issues • Local context evidence for recommended actions • Implementation gaps • How social norms influence intervention uptake Anemia (women and children), Stunting, iodine deficiency disorders, zinc deficiency and diarria
- 12. 3. Research Gaps relating to healthy diets in Ghana Weak contextual evidence for developing food- based dietary guidelines Food consumption behaviour • Portion sizes • Eating habits Understanding of the food environment • Food access • Food composition Drivers of food choice
- 13. 4. SUN Movement Nutrition Research Gaps Nutrition capacity • Mapping capacity in nutrition • Building nutrition capacity in non-health sectors • Deploying nutrition training through community institutions eg banks Nutrition sensitive interventions • How to make social protection programs work for nutrition • Promoting uptake and scale up of nutrition- sensitive solutions eg OFSP, ODF Working together • Understanding best mechanisms for working together across sectors • How to build and sustain transformational leadership in multi- sectoral teams Food and nutrition data systems to monitor progress
- 14. Conclusions • There is need for attention to broader evidence pipeline • Leadership is needed at country level to manage food and nutrition security research across sectors • Need to recognize the contextual differences within countries and to focus attention on understanding subnational gaps in evidence
Editor's Notes
- #7: For example P: I:e.g. drug or a therapy, a screening questionnaire or a health improvement program, or an exposure. C: O: For example, you may be interested in knowing whether an intervention has a health benefit or a service quality improvement, or whether an exposure results in mortality.
- #8: Sustainable Nutrition Research for Africa in the Years to come (SUNRAY)