The 2015 Annual Outlooks and Trends Report discusses the need for a nutrition revolution in Africa, addressing the triple burden of malnutrition, including undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and obesity. It highlights the importance of multisectoral approaches and the role of agriculture in improving nutrition outcomes, while noting that progress is insufficient and challenges remain. The report calls for better evidence-informed decision-making, increased nutrition sensitivity of food systems, and a cohesive food systems approach to leverage agricultural development for nutritional gains.

1. OVERVIEW:
2015 ANNUAL OUTLOOKS AND TRENDS REPORT
(ATOR)
ReSAKSS Conference: 18 October 2016
Namukolo Covic (PhD), IFPRI, Addis Ababa
n.covic@cigar.org

2. Theme: Achieving a nutrition revolution
for Africa, the road to healthier diets
and optimal nutrition
Background: triple burden of malnutrition in Africa
• Undernutrition: stunting, wasting,
• Widespread micronutrient deficiencies
• Increasing overweight/obesity and NCDs (diabetes, high
blood pressure)

3. Nutrition in Africa at crossroads
?

4. Nutrition in Africa at crossroads
Deteriorate
Optimal diets,
nutrition and
health
Reduced stunting +
some micronutrient
deficiencies
Overweight
obesity
NCDs
?

5. ATOR 2015 Highlights: General Comments
1. Recognize the multisectoral nature of nutrition
2. Focus on agriculture to play a greater role in this
multisectoral context
3. Progress is taking place but not fast enough
4. Opportunities are there that can be leveraged
5. Challenges persist and must be addressed
6. ATOR makes recommendations on efforts needed
to realize a nutrition revolution

6. 1. We have opportunities to leverage
• Unprecedented attention to nutrition overall
• 37 of 54 African countries are involved in SUN movement
• 44 African countries at different stages of the CAADP
process
• The progress made, though limited can be leveraged to
accelerate momentum
• Reducing stunting, wasting, underweight
• Setting effectively functioning multisectoral nutrition systems
• Showcase Kenya as an example of what is possible with efforts
along several fronts of a multisectoral process
• Other countries have similar stories
• Strengthening policy environment national, regional and
continental level
• Within the mix of these opportunities agriculture can &
should play a greater role

7. 2. The policy environment for nutrition in
Africa is strengthening
• CAADP: Maputo Declaration (2003); Malabo Declarations
(2014); ARNS 2015-2025; Agenda 2063
• Inclusion of some nutrition indicators in the CAADP Results
Framework (2015)
• National Nutrition Policies and Strategies (SUN movement)
• Mainstreaming nutrition in National Agricultural Investment
Plans (NAIPs); (Nigeria and Mozambique)
• Movement to district level SUN implementation
• Implementation challenges across the board are a challenge
• Agriculture must become more nutrition sensitive starting at the
policy level

8. 3. We have emerging opportunities & challenges on
the nutrition sensitivity of agriculture
• Experiences from homestead food production by HKI:
Increasing the nutrition sensitivity of agriculture is possible
within a multisectoral context.
• Nutrition education, BCC, women empowerment, market links etc.
• Economic development is driving both positive and negative
nutrition outcomes (example: Ghana)
• Increased consumption of more nutrient dense foods e.g. animal
source foods but this is not equitable.
• Increasing unhealthy consumption patterns (more sugar and fat)
• Agric development must be accompanied by attention to safety
aspects that can limit progress on nutrition, health and
economic development
• Examples: mycotoxins (aflatoxin); zoonotic diseases

9. 4. We need better data for evidence informed
decision- making
• Strengthen evidence informed decision making
• Ability to generate contextual evidence taking into account sub-
national disparities is limited
• Systems aligned to national policy cycles and leveraging national
institutions are needed.
• Evaluation of nutrition sensitive agriculture programmes/
projects presents significant challenges
• Methods and design: important that these become part of the
planning and implementation processes of programmes
• Inclusion of nutrition indicators in the CAADP results framework
an opportunity for nutrition

10. 5a. There are several key ways we further look
forward to better nutrition
• Increase the nutrition sensitivity of food systems
• Nutrition objectives; deliberate nutrition components
• Attention to the different pathways through which agriculture
impacts nutrition (e.g. diet quality, income, empowerment etc.)
• Adopting a systems approach to agricultural development is
important (production, value chains, product diversity,
consumption patterns, nutrition outcomes)
• Supporting multisectoral action: capacity and leadership
• Need for multisectoral nutrition coordination systems
• Need for technical and managerial capacity and an adequately
resourced nutrition workforce
• Leadership skills as a critical cross cutting aspect of navigating the
dynamic nutrition landscape

11. 5b. There are several key ways we further look
forward to better nutrition
• Leveraging policy, regulation, science and small holder farmers
for nutrition
• Biofortification (HarvestPlus) breading crops to increase nutrient
density: orange sweet potato, vitamin A maize; vitamin A
cassava, iron beans; zinc rice
• Ethiopian case study on agronomic biofortification using zinc
containing fertilizers.
• Through a foods systems approach to promote food product
development that takes into account the need to balance
nutrition intakes to avoid the increases in overweight and obesity
and related NCDs while addressing undernutrition
• A conducive policy and regulatory environment for better
nutrition

12. 6. CAADP indicators reflect an indication of progress
but also persistent challenges
The ATOR is an annual ReSAKSS activity that tracks progress on
CAADP indicators in response to mutual accountability
commitments of the African Union
• Progress on agriculture indicators
Better progress the further down the CAADP implementation process
• Agricultural production and productivity increasing
• Struggling to meet the 10% budget expenditure on agriculture
and the 6% growth called for in the sector.
• Progress on nutrition indicators
Better progress the further down the CAADP implementation process
• Undernourishment, stunting, underweight in downward trend
• Progress too slow to meet set Malabo targets
• No dietary indicators tracked, data is limited

13. 7. The ATOR calls for a food systems approach to
CAADP
CAADP is operating from many fronts of the agriculture sector
• Promoting agriculture productivity and resilience for food
security,
• Promoting optimal land and water management
• Promoting market development and intra-Africa trade
• Promoting an agriculture led economic development agenda
that addresses employment, poverty, hunger and malnutrition
• But climate variability and environmental degradation along
with globalization pressures added to this mix call for a
deliberate food systems approach to ensure balanced progress

14. A Food Systems Approach for CAADP

15. Concluding remarks
• The policy environment is promising: but more is needed and
attention needs to be paid to an evidence informed policy to
programme cycle including M&E.
• There are indications that CAADP may be contributing to nutrition
progress that should be further looked into and leveraged.
• There are a number of capacity challenges needing attention in
order to attain the desired nutrition revolution.
• Safety aspects need attention so that these do not hold back
progress on nutrition, health and economic development
• A food systems approach is called for to take the CAADP process
to the next level
• Details will be highlighted further in the various presentations of
the conference.

16. OVERVIEW:
2015 ANNUAL OUTLOOKS AND TRENDS
REPORT (ATOR)
Namukolo Covic, Sheryl Hendriks, editors
n.covic@cigar.org; Sheryl.Hendriks@up.ac.za
All Authors
Tsitsi, Makombe
Ousmane Baidane
Pamela Dogbe
CKM, IFPRI