By Philip Tengzu
Wechiau, (UW/R), July 15, GNA – World Vision Ghana has initiated a campaign aimed at addressing issues of child hunger and malnutrition to enhance the holistic development of children in the Upper West Region.
The intervention dubbed: “ENOUGH” to end child hunger and malnutrition, seeks to, among other things, ensure that children are “visible and ahead” in hunger, nutrition and food security related policies at all levels.
The three-year ENOUGH campaign, funded by the World Vision International, is being implemented in about 35 communities in the Wa East and Wa West Districts.
Speaking at the campaign launch in Wechiau in the Wa West District, Mr Sergious Before, the Wa Cluster Programmes Manager of World Vision Ghana (WVG), said hunger and malnutrition affected children’s health and their brain and physical development, which in turn affected their educational outcomes.
He stated that child hunger and malnutrition were exacerbated by factors such as communal conflicts, poverty and changes in the climatic conditions which affected food production, its availability, accessibility and affordability.
“While progress has been made in reducing child stunting with rates dropping from 33 percent in 1993 to 17 percent in 2022, there is still a significant number of children who go to bed with an empty stomach.
UNICEF still believes that 2.4 million children under five years are living in food poverty”, Mr Before explained.
He said as part of efforts to address the menace, WVG supported the Wa West District with 50 boxes of prenatal multivitamin supplements, which benefited over 4,000 pregnant women.
It also donated 5,000 and 3,000 tablets of vitamin “A” to the Wa West and Wa East Districts, respectively, and rehabilitated 36 malnourished children in partnership with the Wa West District Health Directorate since 2024.
Ms. Barbara Asare, the ENOUGH Campaign Coordinator at WVG, encouraged the people to take advantage of locally available food such as beans and leafy vegetables to provide nutrition-rich food for their children.
The campaign targeted to reach 12.5 million children through improved services and policy implementation, 1.3 million children directly with good nutritious food and 3.5 million parents and caregivers with good agricultural practices among others.
She said the campaign also sought to influence policies in health and nutrition, food security, climate smart agriculture, and social protection.
Mr Richard Wulo, the Wa West District Chief Executive (DCE), said the ENOUGH campaign was a call to action by all stakeholders to ensure that every child had access to nutritious food, quality healthcare and opportunities to grow.
He assured the Assembly’s commitment to supporting the campaign by collaborating with WVG to improve access to nutritious food for vulnerable children and their families.
Naa Imoru Nandong Gomah II, the Paramount Chief of Wechaiu Traditional Area, assured WVG of his support and encouraged chiefs to release fertile lands to schools to produce food to feed children.
Stakeholders at the launch included the Wa East DCE, traditional leaders from the Wa East District and representatives from the Ghana Health Services and Departments of Agriculture from the two districts.
The launch witnessed an exhibition of nutrition-rich food including tumpani and tuozaafi with green vegetable sauce, drama on the impact of hunger on children’s education, and stakeholders’ signing of commitment to the campaign.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali/Christian Akorlie