There is an increasing incidence of malnutrition, poor child growth, micronutrient deficiencies, adult overweight, and obesity in the country, the Director-General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, has said.
He said wide disparities persisted in malnutrition rates across the regions, locations and wealth quintiles and, therefore, stressed the need for comprehensive interventions to address those complex and varied challenges.
This challenge, compounded by the emerging problem of over-nutrition, indicates that the country is grappling with multiple facets of malnutrition,” the D-G said.
He, however, said some progress had been made in reducing underweight, anaemia, and stunting in children, as well as improvement in early initiation of breastfeeding and exclusive breastfeeding rates.
Dr. Kuma-Aboagye spoke at a closeout event on advancing nutrition learning organized by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Project
The project provides technical support to advance the government’s effort to improve the planning and delivery of services to promote household resilience and early childhood growth and development in 55 districts across five regions.
The project, which commenced in 2020, also aims at strengthening coordination mechanisms, improving nutrition planning and integration into development plans, addressing the lack of tools
for nutrition planning and integration, and addressing the underlying causes of malnutrition.
Ghana is among 12 countries in Africa that is benefiting from the project.
Progress
The Mission Director of USAID, Kimberly Rosen, said while the country had made some progress in the area of health over the past decades, the nutritional status of children under five still remained a concern.
Quoting the 2022 Demographic Health Survey, she said it revealed that the rate of wasting (low weight for height) increased from five percent in 2014 to six percent in 2022, while stunting (low height for age) was 18 percent as compared to 19 percent in 2014.
She said stunting remained high particularly in the northern regions, peaking at 30 percent in the Northern Region and 29 percent in the North East Region.
“Poor nutrition has many adverse consequences for child survival and long-term well-being. It also has far-reaching consequences for human capital, economic productivity, and national development overall,” the Mission Director added.
Ms Rosen said the US was committed to supporting the government in achieving its health and nutrition objectives, including building a more resilient, productive, and inclusive society.
Interventions
The Chief of Party, USAID Advancing Nutrition Ghana, Selorme Kofi Azumah, said under the project, more than 5,700 health workers received training and supportive supervision to improve nutrition service delivery.
He said it also supported the GHS to reach more than 250,000 children under five and about 120,000 pregnant women with nutrition services, among other interventions.
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