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Malnutrition disaster to public health — Stakeholder
Ghana’s ongoing malnutrition problem is both a public health concern and a development disaster because it affects child survival, mother health, and birth outcomes,
Although Ghana has made significant strides in addressing malnutrition, but critical challenges persist, and immediate action is needed to address the issue, especially with regard to children under five.
These issues were brought up during a stakeholder discussion on malnutrition in Ghana organised by Women, Media and Change (WOMEC), a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) that works to advance gender equality and empower women in partnership with the Coalition of Public Health Actors (CAPHA).
The meeting served as the formal inauguration of the “Nourish Ghana; Advocating for Increased Leadership to Combat Malnutrition Project,” one of WOMEC’s main advocacy efforts. The “Uniting to End Malnutrition” project seeks to increase public awareness of Ghana’s urgent malnutrition problem and its effects on development and health.
The gathering included local stakeholders, the media, civil society organisations (CSOs), and policymakers.
The Executive Director of WOMEC, Dr Mrs Charity Binka, stated in her speech that malnutrition costs Ghana about 6.4 per cent of its GDP annually and that, despite pledges, they were insufficient because the country was still struggling with malnutrition.
She pointed out that despite continuous attempts, little has been accomplished, with inadequate government funding for nutrition programmes and enduring regional imbalances.
Dr Mrs Binka disclosed that new statistics from the 2022 Ghana Demographic Health Survey (GDHS) shows that nearly half of children under five suffer from anaemia, with 18 per cent of them being stunted, 6 per cent wasted, and 12 per cent underweight.
According to her, the statistics demonstrated the urgency with which the problem must be resolved, failing it will have an impact on the productivity and well-being of future generations. She also argued for more financing, responsibility, and leadership in order to boost national policy action on nutrition.
In a statement by Nii-Odoi Odotei, the Principal Planning Analyst of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), malnutrition jeopardises Ghana’s future by preventing sustainable growth and causing large financial losses.
“The coexistence of undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and obesity among the same populations, homes, and people is indicative of the nation’s complicated nutrition landscape,” he said.
Furthermore, Dr Odotei emphasised the urgent need for a coordinated and multi-stakeholder approach that will stand as a tangible step forward in leveraging the knowledge and dedication of the government, civil society, academia, and private sector, stating that the Nourish Ghana initiative “is a timely and strategic response to our nations pressing nutrition challenges.”
He reaffirmed NDPC’s commitment to supporting laws that guarantee more funding, leadership, and transparent accountability in nutrition programmes.
Scaling up Nutrition (SUN), nutritionist, Mrs Wilhelmina Okwabi, lamented that some pregnant women do not eat healthily, which has an impact on their unborn children because a mother who is undernourished gives birth to a child who is also undernourished.
In order to address the problem of malnutrition, she suggested that CSOs must educate women in their communities.
Professor Richmond Nii Okai Aryeetey, Director of the Food and Nutrition Intelligent System (FANIS), at the University of Ghana, said it is critical to update existing work on nutrition rather than repeat it.
He recommended that the private sector take a proactive role in the fight against malnutrition.
By Georgina Quaittoo
The forecourt of the African University of Communications and Business (AUCB) in Accra came alive on Friday with colour, creativity and innovation, as Level 300 students transformed the space into a lively exhibition of ideas.
Under the theme “Building meaningful brands beyond the logo,” the students invited patrons into a world where ordinary products were reimagined through storytelling, design and purpose.
From scented candles to innovative food concepts, each stand told a unique story, one that went beyond aesthetics to capture identity, value and human connection.
For many of the students, the event was more than just an academic exercise; it was a moment to dream out loud.
Guided by their lecturer, Peter Wonders, they explored what it truly means to build a brand in today’s competitive world where trust, consistency and experience matter just as much as logos and slogans.
Chairman of the occasion, Nana Kum Gyata VI, in his remarks said a brand is what people say about you when you are not present.
At the end of the presentations, awards were presented to deserving groups with Vida Nyaneba emerging as the overall best branding student.
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
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The Senior Correctional Centre (SCC) has initiated a lecture session to broaden the horizon of level 400 students at the Social Work Department of the University of Ghana (UG).
The initiative is under the auspices of the Counselling Unit and OIC of the Station, in consultation with the University.
The inaugural lecture delved into education of Social Work students about the role of Ghana Prisons Service and its core mandates, while emphasising the need for counseling as a psychological intervention for inmates mental health and well-being.
It also gave clearer insights about what was required of them in contributing their quota to creating awareness about the Service’s reformational agenda.
The session forms part of the ‘Think Prisons 360 degrees’ initiative, a collaborative efforts of the SCC Counseling Unit to conscientise the final year students of their roles as future social workers.
ASP Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah, a Public Relation Personnel highlighted on the core roles of the Service which include the welfare of inmates, safe custody of inmates, reformation and rehabilitation of inmates, respectively.
Discussing the ‘Think Prisons 360 degree’ agenda birthed by the Director General of the service, DGP Patience Baffoe-Bonnie Esq, Mr Ankrah enumerated the five core pillars of the initiative which include welfare of inmates and staff, agriculture mechanisation, industrialisation, wealth creation and strategic relations.
DSP Belinda Adjei-Attah, Head of SCC Counselling Unit schooled the final year students about the role of counseling as a pivotal reformational tool in the service with the tendency to enhance inmates’ psychological needs.
DSP Adjei-Attah further highlighted how Prison Officers and social workers could work together to reduce recidivism.
DSP Eugene Ansu Ohene-Tutu, a Counseling Personnel at SCC further elaborated on the role of social workers in aiding psychosocial interventions, expanding support systems and bringing in-house psychiatrists to help circumnavigate inmates’ mental health.
Dr Abena Oforiwa Ampomah, Lecturer at the Department commended the Senior Officers for their time with the final year students and commended the Officer-In-Charge of SCC, DDP Yayra Ashong Mettle, for releasing the officers to make such a memorable lecture.
By Spectator Reporter
