Panel Members at Food Security Event in Parliament. Photo provided by Partnership for Child Development.
Today, the former president of Ghana and winner of the World Food Prize 2011, H.E John Kufuor, spoke to the U.K. Parliament about how school feeding programs can help millions of people currently living in poverty.
The event – “Linking local agriculture, nutrition and education: Innovations to improve food security” –was sponsored by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Agriculture and Food for Development and the Partnership for Child Development, Imperial College London (PCD).
In coordination with PCD and Deworm the World, the Global Network shared information at the event about combining deworming efforts with school feeding programs in order to strengthen agriculture, health and education programs.
Parasitic worm infections often undermine existing school feeding programs by causing malnutrition and anemia even in children who are well-fed. Additionally, school-based deworming programs have been linked to improved school attendance and performance, as well as increased earning potential over the long-term.
At the Global Network we’ve often touted the successes of integrating the work of Ministries of Health and Education. Combining this work with Ministry of Agriculture efforts to create predictable demand for agriculture products will provide a more comprehensive approach to food security that could change the reality of poverty and hunger across the developing world. Now that’s innovation!
For more information on the event, click here.
