by ssseck | 2 September 2024

REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS

Africa

ELODIE BECQUEY, SAMUEL BENIN, WIM MARIVOET, AND AULO GELLI

Diverse diet and nutrition conditions call for targeted strategies to increase the supply, affordability, and consumption of healthy foods, especially for the most vulnerable

Addressing the high burden of micronutrient deficiencies and undernutrition in Africa will require lever­aging local, national, regional, and continental food systems to increase the supply and reduce the cost of nutritious foods. This will involve contextualizing evidence-based multisectoral policy and program approaches, including agriculture, health, nutrition, and social protection. The sustain­ability of these efforts requires a focus on the food environments of growing urban areas and related dietary transitions, as well as on strengthening people’s resilience and capacity to cope with global threats posed by climate change, conflicts, and other shocks that reduce access to and availability of the foods needed for a healthy diet.