Vitamin-A Partnership for Africa: A Food Based Approach to ...€¦ · VITAA is promoting a simple...
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ISHS • 12 Vitamin-A Partnership for Africa: A Food Based Approach to Combat Vitamin A Deficiency in Sub-Saharan Africa through Increased Utilization of Orange- fleshed Sweetpotato HORTICULTURAL SCIENCE FOCUS The Vitamin A for Africa (VITAA) partnership is promoting the increased production and use of orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) to com- bat vitamin A deficiency in sub-Saharan Africa. This deficiency is one of the leading causes of early childhood death, and a major risk factor for pregnant women in Africa. Vitamin A is essential for a child’s normal mental and physi- cal development and for keeping everyone healthy and strong - especially pregnant and lactating mothers. The lack of it can be a death sentence, in some cases directly but more often via a weakened immune system, which exposes victims to diseases such as measles, pneumonia and malaria. Vitamin A deficiency also reduces the ability to see clearly in poor light and can lead to night blindness. The VITAA partnership therefore targets young children and their mothers, who are the most vulnerable to vita- min A deficiency. In sub-Saharan Africa, more than 3 million children under the age of five suffer from vitamin A-related blindness. OFSPs are rich in beta-carotenes that the body con- verts easily into vitamin A, they are easy to grow and the average consumer can afford them. Efficacy studies have proved that the daily addition of 100 g of the sweetpotato to the diet can prevent vitamin A deficiency in chil- dren and dramatically reduce maternal mortali- ty. An ex-ante impact assessment (pilot study) has indicated that introducing the new high beta-carotene cultivars will benefit 50 million African children under the age of six. Pioneered and led by the International Potato Center (CIP), the VITAA partnership includes more than 50 organizations from the health, nutrition and agriculture, non-government organizations, community-based organizations, root crops sub-regional research networks, and private business sectors, working together to extend the impact of OFSP in more than ten partner Regina Kapinga, Pamela Anderson, Charles Crissman, Dapeng Zhang, Berga Lemaga and Fina Opio countries in the region. About 15 new starchy OFSP cultivars with moderate resistance to viru- ses and weevils have been accepted by the far- mers and consumers in Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Mozambique and South Africa. OFSP cultivars currently occupy 1-2% of the planted area in the lake zone of Tanzania, 5-10% in Central Uganda and 10-15% in Western Kenya. Adoption is higher if there is a ready market for the cultivars, both as fresh roots and vines and as processed foods. Farmers in wes- tern Kenya, eastern and central Uganda are increasing their incomes by selling planting material. In Uganda, a single farmer can earn up to US$ 400 per month. OFSPs are contribu- ting to the welfare of households disrupted by HIV/AIDS, as well as other crises. In northern Uganda, where persistent violence has forced many farmers to live in protected camps and in Mozambique during the 2000-2001 drought and floods, OFSPs contributed to food security, income generation and improved nutrition for the displaced people. To encourage adoption, VITAA has developed a social marketing strate- gy and action plan. Awareness campaigns and nutrition education are creating a demand for more planting materials and information. Mothers and school-age children are targeted with messages that create demand for the new varieties and associated food products. The work is also encouraging governments, non- government organizations, and community- based organizations to take responsibility for the distribution of the high beta-carotene materials. The initial VITAA activities were sup- ported by contributions from the Canadian International Development Association (CIDA), CIP and its donors that contribute with unres- tricted contributions, United Kingdom Department for International Development (DFID), the OPEC Fund for International Development, the Senior Family Fund, The Micronutrient Initiative, United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-Africa Bureau, the Regional Network for Improvement of Potatoes and Sweetpotato in East and Central Africa (PRAPACE) and the Southern Africa Root Crops Research Network (SARR- NET). Future plans include expanding the VITAA partnership to more countries and sectors, with large-scale dissemination of the varieties to all major sweetpotato producing and consuming countries in Africa. These efforts will be combi- ned with institutional and capacity building and Orange-fleshed sweetpotato.
Transcript of Vitamin-A Partnership for Africa: A Food Based Approach to ...€¦ · VITAA is promoting a simple...
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Vitamin-A Partnership for Africa: A FoodBased Approach to Combat Vitamin ADeficiency in Sub-Saharan Africathrough Increased Utilization of Orange-fleshed Sweetpotato
HORTICULTURAL SCIENCE FOCUS
The Vitamin A for Africa (VITAA) partnershipis promoting the increased production and useof orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) to com-bat vitamin A deficiency in sub-Saharan Africa.This deficiency is one of the leading causes ofearly childhood death, and a major risk factorfor pregnant women in Africa. Vitamin A isessential for a child’s normal mental and physi-cal development and for keeping everyonehealthy and strong - especially pregnant andlactating mothers. The lack of it can be a deathsentence, in some cases directly but more oftenvia a weakened immune system, which exposesvictims to diseases such as measles, pneumoniaand malaria. Vitamin A deficiency also reducesthe ability to see clearly in poor light and canlead to night blindness. The VITAA partnershiptherefore targets young children and theirmothers, who are the most vulnerable to vita-min A deficiency. In sub-Saharan Africa, morethan 3 million children under the age of fivesuffer from vitamin A-related blindness. OFSPsare rich in beta-carotenes that the body con-verts easily into vitamin A, they are easy togrow and the average consumer can affordthem. Efficacy studies have proved that thedaily addition of 100 g of the sweetpotato tothe diet can prevent vitamin A deficiency in chil-dren and dramatically reduce maternal mortali-ty. An ex-ante impact assessment (pilot study)has indicated that introducing the new highbeta-carotene cultivars will benefit 50 millionAfrican children under the age of six. Pioneeredand led by the International Potato Center(CIP), the VITAA partnership includes more than50 organizations from the health, nutrition andagriculture, non-government organizations,community-based organizations, root cropssub-regional research networks, and privatebusiness sectors, working together to extendthe impact of OFSP in more than ten partner
Regina Kapinga, Pamela Anderson, Charles Crissman, Dapeng Zhang,Berga Lemaga and Fina Opio
countries in the region. About 15 new starchyOFSP cultivars with moderate resistance to viru-ses and weevils have been accepted by the far-mers and consumers in Tanzania, Uganda,Kenya, Mozambique and South Africa. OFSPcultivars currently occupy 1-2% of the plantedarea in the lake zone of Tanzania, 5-10% inCentral Uganda and 10-15% in WesternKenya. Adoption is higher if there is a readymarket for the cultivars, both as fresh roots andvines and as processed foods. Farmers in wes-tern Kenya, eastern and central Uganda areincreasing their incomes by selling planting
material. In Uganda, a single farmer can earnup to US$ 400 per month. OFSPs are contribu-ting to the welfare of households disrupted byHIV/AIDS, as well as other crises. In northernUganda, where persistent violence has forcedmany farmers to live in protected camps and inMozambique during the 2000-2001 droughtand floods, OFSPs contributed to food security,income generation and improved nutrition forthe displaced people. To encourage adoption,VITAA has developed a social marketing strate-gy and action plan. Awareness campaigns andnutrition education are creating a demand formore planting materials and information.Mothers and school-age children are targetedwith messages that create demand for the newvarieties and associated food products. Thework is also encouraging governments, non-government organizations, and community-based organizations to take responsibility forthe distribution of the high beta-carotenematerials. The initial VITAA activities were sup-ported by contributions from the CanadianInternational Development Association (CIDA),CIP and its donors that contribute with unres-tricted contributions, United KingdomDepartment for International Development(DFID), the OPEC Fund for InternationalDevelopment, the Senior Family Fund, TheMicronutrient Initiative, United States Agencyfor International Development (USAID)-AfricaBureau, the Regional Network for Improvementof Potatoes and Sweetpotato in East andCentral Africa (PRAPACE) and the SouthernAfrica Root Crops Research Network (SARR-NET). Future plans include expanding the VITAApartnership to more countries and sectors, withlarge-scale dissemination of the varieties to allmajor sweetpotato producing and consumingcountries in Africa. These efforts will be combi-ned with institutional and capacity building and
Orange-fleshed sweetpotato.
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studies of traditional processing to improvebeta-carotene retention. Work will continue ondeveloping nutritional and agricultural trainingprogrammes for household decision-makers,community leaders, local educators and chil-dren.
BACKGROUND
VITAA is promoting a simple change - con-sumption of orange-fleshed sweetpotatoinstead of traditional African white ones - tomake a difference in the lives of millions of chil-dren and mothers, the people most at risk fromvitamin A deficiency. The VITAA partnership, aCGIAR 2003 award-winning project, offersprospective donors an opportunity to support anovel initiative that has achieved major impactin sub-Saharan Africa. On 9 May 2001, aninternational group of 70 agriculturists, healthexperts and nutritionists launched what is belie-ved to be the first crop-based initiative to attackthe tragic consequences of vitamin A deficien-cy in sub-Saharan Africa. Working under theVITAA umbrella, more than 50 partner agenciesfrom the health, nutrition and agricultural sec-tors have agreed to work together to extendthe impact of orange-fleshed sweetpotato inmore than ten partner countries in sub-SaharanAfrica. Original VITAA countries include:Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania,Uganda, Mozambique and Ghana. CIP andpartnership scientists are working in this region,and for the larger global community, to addressthis nutritional deficiency, which is one of theleading causes of early childhood death, and amajor risk factor for pregnant women in Africa.The CIP-led and pioneered VITAA projectrecognizes that this devastating condition iscompletely preventable, and supports researchthat seeks a breakthrough food-based solution- the substitution of vitamin rich orange-fleshedsweetpotatoes for the white-fleshed sweet-potatoes that comprise an important part ofthe sub-Saharan African diet. VITAA fundingagencies include: CIP, DFID, DeutscheGesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit(GTZ), the OPEC Fund for InternationalDevelopment, the Senior Family Fund, TheMicronutrient Initiative, the USAID-AfricaBureau, PRAPACE, and SARRNET.
THE PROMISE OF ORANGE-FLESHED SWEETPOTATO INCOMBATING VITAMIN ADEFICIENCY
A recent ex-ante impact case study conductedby economists from CIP and Michigan StateUniversity strongly suggests that 50 millionAfrican children under the age of six couldbenefit from the new orange-fleshed varieties.Complementary field studies conducted by CIPin collaboration with several VITAA partneragencies, have shown that orange-fleshedsweetpotato and sweetpotato-based food pro-
ducts are not only acceptable to both producersand consumers in terms of appearance, taste,and texture, but also have contributed to thealleviation of vitamin A deficiency. The newsweetpotato cultivars also performed well withrespect to yields, and pest resistance and alsohad high beta-carotene content. One of theprincipal findings from the studies is thatAfrican mothers would readily accept the newcultivars, dispelling the myth that African tastepreferences precluded the use of orange-fleshed sweetpotatoes. The bio-efficacy studyrecently completed in South Africa has demon-strated that the daily addition of as little as 100g of OFSP to the diet could prevent vitamin Adeficiency in children. A micro-enterprise com-ponent using OFSP also has the potential toincrease rural incomes for the people who needit most in rural communities. Now the partner-ship is capitalizing on the opportunity revealedby these findings. Adaptive research activitiesare being advanced in Kenya, Mozambique,Ghana, Tanzania, South Africa, Ethiopia,Madagascar, DR. Congo, Rwanda, Zambia,Malawi, Burundi and Uganda, where theNational Agricultural Research Institutionsscientists are working with CIP’s regional staffto screen several orange-fleshed cultivars inorder to access their suitability to different envi-ronments.
VITAA Goal
Healthy, rural populations through food-basedapproaches to nutrition, focused on vitamin A.
VITAA Purpose
Children and adults consume orange-fleshedsweetpotato (OFSP) in levels that lead to redu-ced vitamin A deficiency.
VITAA Agenda
The agenda consists of a coordinated set ofactivities in the major sweetpotato-producingcountries of Eastern and Southern Africa. Itsprincipal objective is to promote wide-scale pro-duction and use of orange-fleshed sweetpota-to. The partnership program focuses onUganda, Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania, South Africa,Mozambique and Ethiopia. Close linkages arealso maintained with partner institutions inother countries through two regional root andtuber crops research networks: PRAPACE andSARRNET. Project activities include: impactassessment before the interventions (ex-ante),participatory testing of varieties for adaptationand acceptability, community-based multiplica-tion of planting materials, nutrition education,post-harvest processing for market and forhome consumption, promotion through socialmarketing, monitoring of impact on nutritionand health, and capacity building. Principalbeneficiaries are young children and theirmothers, the two groups most at risk for vita-min A deficiency. Implementation strategiesconcentrate on women because of their centralrole in the production and marketing of sweet-potato and other food crops used in the familydiet.
PRINCIPLES OF THE VITAAWORK PLAN
As a result of these highly promising results,VITAA engagement is mainly community-basedand focused on women decision makers. It alsoemphasizes nutrition education and micro-enterprise development. The partnership ope-rates according to the following principles:
� That orange-fleshed sweetpotato is nowacceptable by African consumers and readyfor full-scale development, and will alsoprove effective as an entry point for otherfood-based strategies aimed at reducing vita-min A deficiency in sub-Saharan Africa.
� That VITAA cultivars can empower local com-munities to help mothers and young childrenprevent vitamin A deficiency through theirown labour and industry but also increasetheir incomes through value addition.
� That VITAA provides a highly effective tool toaddress vitamin A deficiency among ruralpoor communities, more especially: children,pregnant women and lactating mothers.
� That evidence exists that the VITAA cultivarsmay also help reducing the impact of anemia,measles, and malaria.
Mrs. Joweria Sekiyanja harvests by piece-meal orange-fleshed sweetpotato rootsfor her family’s meal.
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ABOUT THE AUTHORVITAA PROGRESS ANDMAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS TODATE
Impact Assessments, Monitoring andEvaluation
An ex-ante impact assessment study done joint-ly by the International Food Policy ResearchInstitute (IFPRI) and CIP, which was completed in2001, revealed that in many parts of SSA, thereis sufficient per capita production of sweetpota-to to warrant optimism about positive nutritio-nal consequences for vitamin A deficient popu-lations with the introduction and diffusion ofOFSP cultivars. The study estimates that up to50 million children in the region could benefitsignificantly from the new OFSP cultivars.
Planning and Constituency Building
Working from the results of the ex-ante assess-ment, project leaders have embarked on a pro-gram of constituency building. The objective isto garner support for the use of high vitamin Asweetpotatoes among national policy makers,as well as NGOs and development agenciesworking in agriculture, human health, andnutrition.
Adaptive Research
New technologies exist on: the utilization ofnew noble varieties in the family diets, proces-sing techniques of nutri-products including theenrichment of local weaning foods. To date tento twenty OFSP cultivars with high dry matterhave been accepted by consumers in the region.
Training
To the greatest extent possible, training pro-grams have been and continue to be conductedin all major project areas, including impactassessment, seed multiplication, post harvestprocessing and marketing, micro-enterprise andmicro-credit. Priority has always been given tothe concept of training of trainers. The trainingof experts who can move skills and expertise torural areas and help to empower local peopleincluding extension workers, NGOs and com-
Mrs. Joweria Sekiyanja preparing to serveher family with cooked orange-fleshedsweetpotato.
A child in rural Rwanda eating andenjoying cooked orange-fleshed sweet-potato root.
Dr. Regina Kapinga, International Potato Center(CIP), Box 22274, Kampala, Uganda, is theVITAA Coordinator and Sweetpotato Breeder -SSA, email: [email protected], VITAA website:www.cipotato.org/vitaaDr. Pamela Anderson, International PotatoCenter (CIP), Apartado 1558, Lima 12, Peru, isthe Director General of CIP, email: [email protected], website: www.cipotato.orgCharles Crissman, International Potato Center(CIP), Apartado 1558, Lima 12, Peru, is theDeputy Director General Research of CIP, email:[email protected], website: www.cipo-tato.orgDr. Dapeng Zhang, USDA, ARS-BA-PSI, 10300,Baltimore Avenue, BARC-West, Beltsville, MD,20705, USA, is the breeder-geneticist, AlternateCrops and Systems Laboratory, USDA, email:[email protected]. Berga Lemaga, Regional Network forImprovement of Potatoes and Sweetpotatoes inEastern and Central Africa (PRAPACE), Box22274, Kampala, Uganda, is the coordinator ofPRAPACE, email: [email protected], website:www.asareca.org/prapaceDr. Fina Opio, Namulonge Agricultural andAnimal Production Research Institute (NAARI),Box 7084, Kampala, Uganda, is Chairperson ofthe VITAA Steering Committee for 2003-2005,National VITAA Coordinator, and Director ofNAARI, email: [email protected]
Regina Kapinga
VITAA Steering Committee 2003
Regina Kapinga, International PotatoCenter (CIP), Uganda and Coordinator
Amanda Gani, Ministry of Health,Mozambique
Charlotte Johnson, International Center forResearch on Women (ICRW)
Edward Karuri, University of Nairobi, Kenya
Gabriel Ndunguru, Tanzania Food andNutrition Center (TFNC), Tanzania
Fina Opio, National Agricultural ResearchOrganization (NARO), Uganda andChairperson
Thomas Remington, Catholic Relief Services(CRS)
Samuel Sossi, Ministry of Health, Ghana
Assefa Tofu, Ethiopian AgriculturalResearch Organization (EARO), Ethiopia
Sonja Venter, Agricultural Research Council(ARC), South Africa
Annie Wesley, Micronutrient Initiative (MI),Canada
munity leaders, has been given increasinglyhigher priority.
Social Marketing
To encourage adoption of new technologies,VITAA has also developed a social marketingstrategy and action plan. Targeting has focusedon mothers and school-age children with mes-sages that create demand for the new varietiesand associated food products. The social mar-keting component has also encouraged thecountry governments, non-government organi-zations, and community-based organizations totake responsibility for the distribution of thehigh beta-carotene materials and for micro-enterprise development.
Pamela Anderson
Charles Crissman Dapeng Zhang
Berga Lemaga Fina Opio
