Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) enhancing capacity to monitor progress towards achieving zero hunger and improve nutrition in Angola, Mali, Senegal, and Tanzania – African Business

As African countries race against each other to end hunger by 2030 the need for improved data collection, analysis, interpretation and reporting is vital in tracking progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 2(SDG2) on zero hunger, nutrition, and promoting sustainable agricultural production.

It is vital that countries have reliable and accurate basic data to monitor SDGs if they want to meet their commitment to end hunger and malnutrition.

However, it is still difficult to assess progress towards achieving the SDG 2 because of the lack of data.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, funded by the Government of Japan through the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, launched a project that aims to improve national capacities in order to ensure that countries have timely and relevant data to produce and report on the SDG 2 Indices.

Employing standardized tools to guide policies to end hunger

Under the project “Supporting Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 2.1 Monitoring by Strengthening Nutrition Security and Nutrition Information in Africa” the national data and statistics institutions in Angola, Mali, Senegal, and Tanzania, are being supported to collect, analyze, and monitor data on food and nutrition security using standardized tools whose estimates are internationally comparable to guide policies to end hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.

Particularly, FAO is strengthening the capacities of the countries to produce and evaluate data for the two indicators – the Prevalence of undernourishment (PoU) and the Prevalence of Moderate and Severe Food Insecurity based on the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) – used to monitor progress toward SDG 2.

Technical assistance contributes to better knowledge, technical capabilities at sub-national and national levels to assess, monitor and evaluate food insecurity and nutrition with the aim to produce evidence-based strategies to end hunger or malnutrition.

Angola: Advanced analysis is used to identify the most insecure food sources

Since March 2020, the Government of Angola through the National Bureau of Statistics (INE) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in collaboration with FAO, have conducted numerous workshops – both online and in-country – on the methodological and technical analysis of the SDG 2.1.2 Indicator; the Prevalence of Moderate and Severe Food Insecurity based on the FIES. Participants analyzed FIES data from Angola’s recently concluded National Census of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

The data was compared using the 2019 FIES Labour Force Survey data. Advanced analysis was performed using multiple socio-economic and demographic variables to better understand the results and identify the most food-insecure populations.

Mali: Food security can’t be measured using one indicator

The primary objective was to strengthen the capacities of relevant institutions in technical analysis of SDG 2.1 Indicators. To better understand how countries can monitor the multidimensionality of nutrition security and food security, we also discussed the SDG2.1 Indicators.

It was reiterated that food security is not a single indicator. The FAO basket of nutrition and food security indicators was discussed in detail. Data from the Household Budget Surveys of 2018-2020 was used to technical analyze the indicators.

Senegal: Establishing a joint Taskforce for the SDG-2.1 Indicators

Experts from the government and partners in food security were trained on how to apply and analyze the FIES and Food Consumption Modules in surveys with varying levels of representativity. The training helped to build the technical skills of the structures responsible for monitoring SDG 2 through the use of FIES/PoU indicators. A joint taskforce was formed to oversee the use of the SDG 2.1 indicators in the country for monitoring the evolution in food and nutrition security.

A preliminary report on the evolution of nutrition security and food in Senegal was prepared using the results of the Household Budget Survey of 2018. This analysis produced not only the FIES/PoU but also a set of comparable and relevant indicators.

Tanzania: Removing gender disparities in food access

Technical experts worked together to prepare the preliminary food security and nutrition reports for Zanzibar and Tanzania Mainland. It contributed to the capacity of government experts in the analysis, interpreting of the results and report writing. FIES and PoU were re-examined. The Household Budget Surveys for 2017 and 2019 were also analyzed. Relevant food and nutrition security statistics were generated by using the ADePT software. The workshop results served as the basis for preliminary food security assessments reports.

A draft of a comprehensive food and nutrition security report was completed. The most important results were also broken down at the gender level to make it easier to see the gender differences in access to food. The report will inform the country’s progress in different sectors and serve as a guide to formulate sustainable policies and interventions for addressing food and nutrition insecurity.

To create a reliable trend, the agreed-upon indicators will be consistently collected, analyzed, reported on, and reported on.

“The Comprehensive Food Security Reports based on the PoU and the FIES indicators will be vital in Tanzania, not only in highlighting the food security situation, but also in the Government efforts to meet other SDGs,” Mwalimu Juma from Zanzibar’s Office of the Chief Government Statistician said.

Distributed by APO Group for FAO Regional Office for Africa