We have witnessed much progress on reducing chronic hunger and malnutrition at global level over the past two decades. The progress, however, was not as quick as hoped, to achieve the World Health Assembly Targets, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs) by 2030. The COVID-19 pandemic, now risks reversing the progress made. This episode of Bite the Talk - "Raising the alarm on COVID-19 and malnutrition" focuses on how the COVID-19 pandemic is driving malnutrition in all its forms – and what can be done about it.
While the pandemic continues to unfold, there is an urgent need to address the alarming projections modelled by the Standing Together for Nutrition Consortium. In their most recent paper, they warn of the 3 crises in 1 – the economic, the food systems, and health system crisis will have severe consequences on nutrition, with inaction condemning a whole generation.
On this podcast episode we chat to experts and members of the STfN Coalition; Dr Anna Lartey, leading academic at the University of Ghana and former Director of Nutrition at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and our very own Dr Lynnette Neufeld, Director of Knowledge Leadership at GAIN. Both guests share their views on the possible consequences the pandemic might bring, highlighting vulnerable groups such as women and children, but also all the opportunities which arises from the pandemic, like the STFN consortium that collectively seeks to fill in the knowledge gaps in terms of malnutrition.