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Everyone living in Ghana can have adequate and nutritious food throughout the year, if there is a stronger integration between the pillars that affect food security and nutrition, under the leadership of the government, says a report launched today in Accra.

The report, “Addressing Sustainable Development Goal 2: The Ghana Zero Hunger Strategic Review”, argues that ending hunger and malnutrition cannot be achieved without a holistic approach that hinges on improvements in agriculture, and other sectors including nutrition, health, water, sanitation and hygiene, gender and social protection that directly or indirectly affect food and nutrition.

Despite significant reductions in food insecurity since the 1990s, hunger and malnutrition remain a real concern in parts of Ghana, especially in the northern regions and among rural and peri-urban communities. Comprehensive action is required to overcome these challenges, hence the recommendation for a food security and nutrition advisory board at the Office of the President to embed this as a cornerstone of national development.

“Eliminating hunger and malnutrition forms the basis of achieving other development goals and therefore we are committed to implementing the clearly thought out actions identified in the roadmap of this Strategic Review,” said Prof. George Gyan-Baffour, Minister for Planning.

The report highlights the need for the production and consumption of foods which are rich in nutrients. Apart from the increase in the production of maize, there has been a decline in production of traditional nutritious staple foods such as sorghum, millet, groundnuts and cowpeas over the past decade.

“As we seek to achieve zero hunger in our country, we should always remember that food production must be nutrition-sensitive,” said H.E John Agyekum Kufuor, Ghana’s former President and the lead convenor of the Zero Hunger Review. “It is more important for food to nourish the body than simply fill the stomach.”

The Zero Hunger Strategic Review is an independent, analytical and consultative exercise which the World Food Programme (WFP) has initiated globally, to identify the key challenges to achieving zero hunger in countries where it works.

“We are using this review as the basis for WFP’s five-year country strategic plan in Ghana which is built to support the government’s excellent flagship programmes and agricultural policies,” said Abdou Dieng, WFP Regional Director for West and Central Africa. “In the new programme, we will work more closely with the private sector to reduce post-harvest losses and malnutrition using a market-based approach which will be self-sustaining. “

The Zero Hunger Strategic Review in Ghana was undertaken by a research team from the University of Ghana, University for Development Studies and the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. Former President, H.E. John Agyekum Kufuor is the lead convenor of the process facilitated by the John A. Kufuor Foundation.