Transcript Document

Synthesis of Key Priority
Information and Communication
Needs and Tools
in Food and Nutrition Security
in the Caribbean
Ballayram
Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute
Data on Caribbean transitions
Epidemiological transition
1. The data indicate that NCDs have replaced malnutrition and
infectious diseases as the major public health problems.
2. The burden of disease, disability, and premature deaths has
shifted from young children to adults in their productive years
of their life.
3. Unbalanced diets and a sedentary life-style have increased the
prevalence of chronic non-communicable diseases.
4. Obesity has increased in the region over the past two and a
half decades.
5. These diseases involve significant costs to patients and the
health system
1. Scientific evidence supports the view that:
•
Nutrition and diets have strong effects on health
throughout the life cycle
•
Nutrition/diet is a major modifiable determinant of
chronic disease
•
Diets influence present health, and also whether or
not an individual will develop NCDs later in life.
Repositioning Caribbean Agriculture
• Health must be a central consideration in the current
discourse on repositioning Caribbean agriculture.
• A major challenge for Caribbean agriculture is to
engender a new health-oriented agricultural policy
• We must seek to transcend the historical bias that
favours setting quantitative/supply-side goals:
• Instead, give priority to quality by emphasizing certain
foods that are more conducive to appropriate and
health diets.
National Plans of Action For Food and Nutrition
•A food and nutrition security policy embodies a very
concise set of statements on the overall aims and objectives
of the policy:
•To ensure adequate supply of and accessibility to safe and
nutritious foods for all members of the country’s
population)
•NPANs contain principles that guide its formulation, and
the strategies and programs to achieve these objectives.
NPANs (con’d)
•The NPANs expresses in operational terms what are
contained in the food policy
•The programs/activities in NPANs are designed to
respond to the food and nutrition needs of
communities.
•These programs may be ongoing programs, and/or
new programs that complement others or fill gaps
that constrain food and nutrition security.
Information and Communication Needs
•The priority information needs depend on the requirements
of
•stakeholders
•policy makers
•private sector
•media and NGOs
•producers
•consumers
•principal realm of operations of these stakeholders
•International
•regional
•national/local levels
•Adequate, timely and relevant information can
facilitate decision makers to
•Design appropriate food, price and other related policies
•Contribute to improvements in the nutrition and health
status of the population.
General Observation
The main information and communication needs
identified for stakeholders :
•Information on international companies (i.e. Company
Registers)
•Modes of transportation, protocols for trade, current trade
rules and regulations
•Findings from trade analyses, information on tariffs and
non-tariff barriers, and information on tools and mechanisms
available to policy makers to address these constraints.
•Food safety requirements, information on food labels
trends in world market prices
• Special requirements for entry into potential markets
•Related information that will facilitate informed decisions
by policy makers and others
•Information on alternative food supply (importers and
exporters), input suppliers (e.g. fertilizers)
•relative food prices so that producers and consumers
could benefit from competition.
•Information on marketing services, market
intelligence
•International demand for goods and services
•producers and policy makers can bring together
agents from the supply and demand sides of the
market in an efficient way
•Information on vulnerable groups
•who are vulnerable
•where they are located
•why they are vulnerable
•current trends in dealing with the vulnerable groups
•policy makers can target specific groups and
plan appropriate interventions
The discussions on information and
communication tools emphasized, inter alia
•Much attention has to be given to enhance users’ access to
appropriate information and communication tools;
•Some creative mix
communication tools
among
modern
and
traditional
•Ongoing capacity building (training in software/hardware)
•Acquisition of equipment
•creating an engendering environment for access and utilization
of information and communication tools are urgently needed;
•Traditional information and communication tools
will continue to feature as effective tools in the
short to medium term:
•such as radio
•Newspapers
•Television
•libraries
•bulletin boards.
•Governments must allocate financial, human and technical
resources to develop modern communication and information
tools such as internet, e-conferencing, etc.
•Official tools should constitute an integral part of the core set of
tools utilized by all stakeholders:
•policy papers
•cabinet position papers and minutes
•nutrition and health reports
•international data bases (e.g. FAO, USDA, etc), and similar
Surveillance systems to collect and collate data
•Communication skills
•Training
•Co-ordinating mechanism
•Human resource, intellectual capacity
•Computers (internet access), telephone, fax
Current trade protocols, food safety rules and
international agreements
•Human resource, intellectual capacity
•Hard copy of current treaties, conference presentations
•Internet access
Human Resource Capacity Development
•Trained personnel
•policy writing
•advocacy skills
•presentation skills
•General—Capacity Development
•Training programs on healthy diets
•Training in repackaging of information
•Training of media personnel in matters relating to food,
health and nutrition.
Conclusion
•To achieve these priority areas of ICTs has to rely on
extensive partnering and collaboration and resource
sharing
•Several areas of potential collaboration among regional
and internationals institutions in general and among
CTA, CARDI and CFNI/PAHO in particular could be
gleaned from the synthesis.
•
Thank You