ADDIS ABABA - October 23, 2024 (NIPN-Ethiopia) - The 6th National Information Platforms for Nutrition (NIPN) Global Gathering (GG) was launched here yesterday under the theme ‘NIPN for the Future: Sustainability in an Evolving Policy Environment.’ Ethiopia’s Minister of Health, Dr. Mekdes Daba, officially opened the event, which includes the participation from nine NIPN member countries
The Minister stated in her opening remarks that the agenda being discussed by NIPN GG is very related to the activities of her Ministry of Health (MoH). “The government of Ethiopia has established the food system and nutrition governance from the federal to the kebele level. The food system and nutrition governance coordinate the implementation of the food and nutrition policy, and its implementation strategy has been guided by the Seqota Declaration (SD) and Food System Transformation,” she said.
Dr. Mekdes said that the MoH established the multi-sectoral NIPN advisory committee to provide overall guidance for the NIPN and the National Food and Nutrition Strategy Monitoring, Evaluation, and Research Steering Committee (MER-SC) to feed policy questions. Speaking of the initiatives taken by NIPN-Ethiopia, she said that it has profound impact on the health and well-being of the community. “The NIPN-Ethiopia initiative has played a crucial role in shaping nutrition policies through evidence-based, informed decision-making. To achieve its goal and mission, NIPN works under the national food and nutrition governance system and collaborates with many multi-sectoral food and nutrition stakeholders and partners,” she said.
The Minister extended her gratitude to partners, particularly the European Commission, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the United Kingdom Department for International Development for their financial support and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) for the technical support during the initial phase of implementation launched in 2018 aiming to eradicate hunger and under nutrition through evidence-based decision-making. "We are also grateful that NIPN Phase II is supported by the European Union (EU) and the German Federal Ministry for Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and the support implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)."
Director General of the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), Dr. Mesay Hailu, said on his part that the EPHI, as a technical arm of the Ministry of Health, with a mission to protect and promote the health of Ethiopian people, is also the responsible body and chair of the steering committee for monitoring, evaluation, and research needs of the National Food and Nutrition Strategy. He further said that emphasis should be given to the profound impact EPHI’s work has on the health and well-being of our communities.
The Director General has also said that EPHI would intensify support so that NIPN’s initiatives become successful. “The NIPN-Ethiopia initiative has played a crucial role in shaping nutrition policies through informed decision-making. Since the launch of the NIPN-Ethiopia initiative in 2018, the EPHI has been at the forefront to host NIPN, and thereby striving to strengthen evidence-based decision-making within the National Food and Nutrition Policy (NFNP) and ultimately enhance the nutritional landscape,” Dr. Mesay said.
Ms. Carlotta Preiss, Deputy Head of Cooperation at the Germany Embassy in Addis Ababa, said on the occasion that her government supports the NIPN initiatives in Ethiopia to strengthen evidence-based nutrition programming through better data, policy evidence, and capacity building in a multi-sectoral approach.
Ms. Carlotta Preiss appreciated the long-standing cooperation between Germany and Ethiopia on food and nutrition security in a bid to address hunger and malnutrition by collecting nutrition data and trying to create evidence-based programming. She emphasized that this would be implemented with a focus on women and children.
Ms. Hélène Berton, Policy Officer, Nutrition, Sustainable Agri-Food System and Fisheries, DG INTPA (Directorate-General for International Partnerships), European Commission Head Quarters, Brussels, has expressed the EU’s commitment to ensure the program’s implementation. She appreciated the “remarkable progress” in the development of the NIPN transform across all member countries.
“The project capacity is impressive,” she said, extending her gratitude to all member countries, including the implementing partners, GIZ, UNICEF, and others.
The 6th Global Gathering has brought together the NIPN Global team from nine countries: Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guatemala, Kenya, Laos, Niger, Uganda, Zambia, and the host country, Ethiopia, including implementing partners, donors, and other vital nutrition stakeholders. (NIPN-Ethiopia)
