COVID-19 could exacerbate African malnutrition issues, flag experts

17 Apr 2020 --- As the COVID-19 pandemic continues its path of destruction around the world, many experts are flagging the devastating impact it is likely to have on less economically developed countries. Malnutrition is at the forefront as even affluent countries struggle to ease supply chain issues caused by stockpiling. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the African Union (AU) and international partners are joining forces to minimize the impact of a lockdown in Africa, where one in five are already going hungry. Meanwhile, Robin Chater, Secretary-General of The Federation of International Employers (FedEE), tells NutritionInsight that the focus on the coronavirus pandemic has detracted from child malnutrition.

“Healthy diets are key and are part of the health response. A lesson throughout the world is that food value and supply chains must be continued to be kept alive. Every situation is different, but it is important to make sure that the most vulnerable are protected as if not the situation will get out of hand, including on the health front. This is one reason why FAO Director Director-General Qu Dongyu has asked all countries everywhere to try to increase food production and where possible shorten supply chains,” an FAO spokesperson tells NutritionInsight.

Meanwhile, Chater of FedEE flags that efforts to solve pre-existing malnutrition issues may be falling by the wayside as many countries focus on domestic policy. He argues that if these same resources used for COVID-19 were directed to child malnutrition, then the number of lives saved would readily amount to over 500,000 in the last 90 days. 

“The resources devoted to dealing with COVID-19 are growing every day and making the Chinese spend look modest. [As of mid-March], we have around US$300 billion budgeted in just a few countries – excluding borrowings for interest-free loans. [These resources] are a fortune in less economically developed countries and would save most lives,” states Chater.

He notes that while the money that child malnutrition has received is considerable if looked at over many decades, it amounts to very little if looked at by the month. According to him, UNICEF is the biggest agency concerned and they had a total annual budget of US$6 billion in 2018, with a core budget of US$2.5 billion.

He adds that the undernourishment in less economically developed countries will also increase fatality rates. He points to the example of the 1918-1919 Spanish Flu, which killed 25 million people in India alone. “Sub-Saharan Africa is reducing its level of fertility, but still growing its population very fast and there are just not enough resources to go around. What good are cocoa beans in Ghana if the people are starving?”

“COVID-19 is a serious problem, but only because of the West’s prejudice against China stopped it waking up to the dangers to itself early enough. It needs to be controlled, but not in a heavy-handed way. If political leaders were more capable, they could get their populations behind them,” explains Chater. 

“The role for employers – especially international employers – is to question the actions of the government, stop jumping every time governments say ‘jump’ and start blaming them for the economic collapse that is happening. Employers should be using their investment power to force governments to manage the virus problem in a calm and responsible way,” he concludes.

Children in affluent countries are also facing new nutrition challenges as a result of COVID-19 as schools shut down. This is having a particular effect on children who rely on government-subsidized school meals, with US and UK governments now taking steps to ensure that vulnerable children stay fed even out of school. 

Quick, strategic action is needed to lessen the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food security in Africa.Safeguarding African nutrition
According to Dongyu of FAO, quick, strategic action is needed to lessen the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food security in Africa. “Border closures restrict trade and limit food availability in many countries, particularly those dependent on food imports,” he says. He supports measures that do not lead to disruptions in food supply chains.

The food and agriculture system is “an essential service that must continue to operate during periods of lockdown, emergency, curfew and other containment measures,” according to the FAO and its partners. The organizations have committed to supporting access to food and nutrition for Africa’s most vulnerable; providing Africans with social safety nets; minimizing disruptions to the safe movement and transport of essential people, and to the transport and marketing of goods and services; and keeping borders open on the continent for the food and agriculture trade.  

The spokesperson explains that while many African countries depend on food imports, there is also a lot of food on the continent. Therefore, facilitating trade – both domestic and cross-border – is key to getting from to where it is needed. “The other issue is that the health emergency adds to strains that pre-existed, notably in the Sahel region. Lastly, the desert locust scourge continues, and the continent is about to enter a major planting season,” explains the spokesperson.

The joint declaration represented all 55 AU member states and has been adopted at a virtual gathering, with a debate moderated by the AU Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, Josefa Sacko. 

By Katherine Durrell