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G8 Leaders Should Focus On Maternal And Child Nutrition

This week, G8 development ministers are meeting in Halifax to decide on development priorities for the upcoming leaders summit in June. A key issue being discussed is the health of mothers and young children, and it is easy to understand why: Each year, more than 3.5 million children die as a result of poor nutrition. This is nearly 10,000 lives lost each day.

No issue is more urgent, or more foundational to other development goals, than getting maternal and child nutrition right. Canada is providing critical leadership on this issue as it hosts the G8 Summit.

The science is now clear on what's at stake. We know that children never recover from the mental and physical stunting that occurs if undernourished in their first two years of life. By allowing under-twos to remain malnourished, we are robbing an entire generation of their very future. That's why the focus on under-twos is critical - this is the window of opportunity where a global investment can pay dividends for decades to come.

200 million children

Globally, malnutrition affects almost 200 million children (UNICEF). This means that 200 million children right now are being dealt lasting damage to their young minds and bodies. These are children affected by the earthquake in Haiti, the drought in Kenya, violence in Somalia, and high prices in the Central Asian republics.

Malnutrition is an economic issue as well. Studies show that the cost of malnutrition to developing countries is as high as 11 per cent of GDP, and children who receive adequate nutrition earn wages that are nearly 50 per cent higher as adults.

Although there are many causes of child malnutrition, there is one goal: Getting the right food and nutrition interventions to vulnerable children at the right time. Unfortunately, achieving that goal is not simple and requires a historic collaboration among experts in many fields - from science and food technology to heath, global logistics and medicine.

Right food, right time

WFP provides 100 million people a year with food and nutrition interventions, including school meals and nutritional supplements. Last year, 80 per cent of our interventions went to women and children because they are often most at risk. Filling empty bellies is no longer enough. Armed with nutritional knowledge, we know that we need to ensure that the food provided is the right nutritional match for the most vulnerable people - pregnant and lactating women, children under two and those with HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening illnesses.

Canada has been a leader in fighting malnutrition. Canada's support and focus on malnutrition helped WFP provide critical supplementary feeding to children under five and pregnant and nursing mothers in the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti, and so many other places around the world. In addition, Canada is a leading supporter of the Micronutrient Initiative, which works to ensure that vulnerable people in developing countries get the vitamins and minerals they need to survive and thrive.

Unique opportunity

We know that we have much more to do. The World Bank estimates that about $10 billion (U.S. dollars) per year would provide 13 proven interventions in the most vulnerable countries, from food fortification to targeted supplements for the most vulnerable.

Nations have tackled and solved this problem, including China, Brazil, Thailand and Chile. Lasting, sustainable nutrition solutions must be country-led. Donor nations and private sector partnerships can then help catalyze homegrown solutions with critical financial backing and scientific know-how.

The G8 has a unique opportunity to make combatting child malnutrition a pillar of the leaders' summit in Muskoka. Now is the time. All that is needed is focus, our combined knowledge, political will and resources from around the world. The G8 summit can become a tipping point where the world can rally to make child malnutrition history. We can do this, and Canada can continue to lead the way.

This article was first published in the Toronto Star