Botswana among countries facing burden of malnutririon
Botswana is failing in three critical tests for malnutrition, says the 2018 Global Nutrition Report which was released in Bangkok at the “Accelerating the End of Hunger and Malnutrition” event. The fifth edition of the annual report found that one in three people globally is malnourished, and that the problem exists in every country on the planet, but that Africa was “by far” the world’s hardest-hit region. Botswana is among 41 countries three quarters of which are in Africa facing the triple burden of stunting among under-fives, and anaemia and overweight among women, all key indicators of malnutrition. The country is also said to be on track to meet only two of the nine nutrition targets examined in the report. These relate to wasting among under-fives and overweight in the same age group. In terms of anaemia among women of reproductive age it is making “some progress”. But in the other indicators it is making “no progress or worsening”. These are stunting in under-fives and obesity and diabetes in adult men and women. No data was available for Botswana in the final category measured, exclusive breastfeeding. The report also shows that globally, stunting among children under five has fallen from 32.6 percent in 2000 to 22.2 percent in 2017, but Botswana’s rate is at 31.4 percent. The data shows an overall increase in both overweight and obesity in Africa at the same time as the region experiences significant growth in consumption of packaged foods, most of which are nutritionally deficient. The prevalence of obesity rose in every single country between 2010 and 2014, and one in 12 adults worldwide now has Type 2 diabetes. “Diets are one of the top risk factors of morbidity and mortality in the world, more than air pollution, more than smoking,” said Corinna Hawkes, co-chairperson of the report. The report urges leaders to keep nutrition policy at the forefront of their decision-making. Nutrition, according to Hawkes is crucial, especially in the first 1000 days (from conception up to 2 years) of a child. The timing of the report is particularly important as United Nations member states convene to adopt the Sustainable Development Goals later this month.