Moot held to discuss Scaling up Nutrition Movement’s Business Network aimed at provision of food and good nutrition to all Pakistanis
Ministry of Planning, Development and Reforms organised a meeting of the “Scaling up Nutrition (SUN) Movement’s Business Network (SBN) in collaboration with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), Micronutrient Initiative (MI) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to foster the efforts for scaling up nutrition in Pakistan.
Planning Ministry Chief of Nutrition and SUN focal person Muhammad Aslam Shaheen, Ministry of National Health Services Regulation and Coordination Nutrition Focal Person Dr Baseer Achakzai, WFP Pakistan Representative and Country Director Lola Castro, MI Country Director Dr Tausif Janjua, GAIN Country Manager Sajjad Imran, government representatatives from the federal and provincial departments, delegates from the business community, United Nations Organisations (UNO), nutrition development partners and academia attended the meeting.
Welcoming the participants, Shaheen stated, “I would like to congratulate all of you that, today, the private sector, the government and other partners are sitting together to formulate the SUN business network in Pakistan. This is a critical step taken by the SUN Secretariat in prioritising the need to invest in nutrition in collaboration with the SBN conveners.”
Speaking on the occasion, Castrostated, “Either through unilateral business investment, or catalysed by the public-private partnerships, the private sector can support the cause with the provision of the right tools for scaling up nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions including expertise in product development and manufacturing, quality assurance and control, efficient distribution networks as well as supporting the national capacity at the country level.”
Castro gave examples of salt iodisation and the development of specialised nutrition products in Pakistan where the private sector played a key role to make it successful.
“Addressing malnutrition is one of the best investments a Pakistani can make for the country’s future,” said Dr Janjua. He strongly supported the potential of scaling up of fortification interventions based on the successful model of the Universal Salt Iodisation (USI) programme.
“It is a unique movement founded on the principal that everyone has the right to food and good nutrition. It unites people from the government, the civil society, the UNO, donors, businesses and researchers in an effort to improve nutrition,” said Imran while presenting an overview of the SUN movement in Pakistan.
