Global workshop closes with commitment to enabling environment for new research on fish for nourishment

Background

Through the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the world has committed to ending all forms of malnutrition. Reorienting food systems across all actors and levels, towards improving nutrition outcomes (nutrition-sensitive food systems) is central to achieving this goal, as was recognized in the second International Conference on Nutrition (ICN2) Framework for Action and further strengthened by the declaration of the United Nations Decade of Action on Nutrition 2016-2025. The CGIAR has also committed to improvements in food and nutrition security with specific targets for increasing dietary diversity of women and reducing micronutrient deficiencies up to 2030. Fish is uniquely placed to contribute to this goal, yet has received inadequate attention in debates on nutrition-sensitive food systems. 

Objectives of the workshop

The program for this workshop has been developed to achieve the following objectives:

  1. Heighten the understanding of nutrition-sensitive fish Agri-food system approaches
  2. Expand implementation of nutrition-sensitive fish Agri-food systems in the countries in which we work
  3. Strengthen research approaches to monitor and evaluate impacts on nutrition
  4. Advocate for and influence global and country investments, policies and strategies

3:30 – 4 pm

Registration

4 – 4:10 pm

Welcome:

  • Ms. Yumiko Kura, Country Director, Cambodia and Regional Program Manager, WorldFish [Watch]

4:10 – 5 pm

Opening remarks:

  • Ms. Joyce Njoro, Lead Technical Specialist, Nutrition, Office of the Associate Vice President, Programme Management Department, IFAD [Watch]
  • Mr. Aymeric Roussel, Attaché, Natural Resources Management - Rural Development, Delegation of the European Union to the Kingdom of Cambodia [Watch]
  • H.E. Dr. Yim Chhay Ly, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of Council for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD), Royal Government of Cambodia [Watch]

5 – 5:30 pm

Keynote address:

  • Dr. Robert Bertram, Chief Scientist, Bureau of Food Security, USAID – Nutrition-sensitive strategies in food systems to end hunger and malnutrition by 2030 [Watch] [Presentation]

9 –  10:30 am

Session theme: What are nutrition-sensitive fish agri-food systems?

Chair: Dr. Gareth Johnstone, Director General, WorldFish

  • Dr. Shakuntala Thilsted, Research Program Leader, Value Chains and Nutrition, WorldFish – Workshop overview and objectives [Watch]
  • Dr. Jessica Bogard, Post-doctoral Fellow – Nutrition, WorldFish - Why nutrition? Reasons behind the global momentum for nutrition-sensitive approaches [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Shakuntala Thilsted, Research Program Leader, Value Chains and Nutrition, WorldFish – Why fish? The unique opportunity for fish-agri food systems to contribute to nutrition [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Ms. Nomindelger Bayasgalanbat, Regional Nutrition Officer, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – What is nutrition-sensitive agriculture? [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Michael Phillips, Director, Aquaculture and Fisheries Sciences, WorldFish – What are nutrition-sensitive fish agri-food systems? Approaches and lessons from WorldFish [Watch] [Presentation]

Q & A – 20 mins

11 – 12:30 pm

Session theme: Perspectives on the directions for nutrition-sensitive food systems to 2030

Chair: Mr. David Shearer, Director, International Partnerships and Program Delivery, WorldFish

  • Mr. Mostafa Faruk al Banna, Associate Research Director and Nutritionist, Ministry of Food, Government of Bangladesh – National level policy development: from agricultural production to nutrition-sensitive food systems [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Pawan Patil, Senior Economist, World Bank – The role of fish in World Bank’s development agenda [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Hamady Diop, Head of Natural Resources Governance Food Security and Nutrition, NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa’s Development) Agency – The role of fish in NEPAD’s strategic direction [Watch] [Presentation]

Q & A – 20 mins

60 second poster pitches [Watch] [Presentation]

1:30 – 3 pm

Chair: Dr. Robert Bertram, Chief Scientist, Bureau of Food Security, USAID

  • Mr. Shunji Sugiyama, Senior Advisor, Fisheries sector, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) – Initiative for Food and Nutrition Security in Africa (IFNA) and contributions of the fisheries sector [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Samuel Thevasagayam, Deputy Director, Global Development, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) – The Potential of Fish for Smallholder Farmers: Improved Returns in Nutrition, Income and Resilience [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Lucy Carter, Research Scientist, CSIRO Land and Water - Experiences with institutional, strategic and capacity building approaches to nutrition-sensitive agriculture [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Jessica Fanzo, Associate Professor, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University – Food systems for nutrition: the role for nutrition-sensitive fish agri-food systems [Watch] [Presentation]

Q & A – 20 mins

60 second poster pitches [Watch] [Presentation]

3:30 – 5 pm

Workshop activity 1: How to make fish agri-food systems more nutrition-sensitive?

Facilitator: Dr. Jessica Bogard, Post-doctoral Fellow – Nutrition, WorldFish

Objectives of the workshop activity 1: 

  • Map the continuum of fish agri-food systems that WorldFish and partners work with
  • Assess nutrition-sensitivity of current work programs
  • Identify options to increase nutrition-sensitivity across the continuum of fish agri-food systems

8.30 – 10 am

Session theme: The continuum of fish agri-food systems and links to nutrition

Chair: Dr. Jeppe Kolding, Professor, Department of Biology, University of Bergen 

  • Dr. David Little, Professor, Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling - The continuum of production systems: creating more opportunities for links to nutrition [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Ms. Tess Geers, Marine Scientist, Oceana – The little fish than can feed the world [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Mr. Mike Akester, Country Director, WorldFish Myanmar – Aquaculture in Myanmar – a new frontier for nutrition-sensitive approaches?  [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Mr. Rick Gregory, Consultant, WorldFish – Rice field fisheries and their contribution to nutrition in the Ayeyarwaddy Delta and the Tonle Sap  [Watch] [Presentation]

Q & A – 20 mins [Watch]

10 – 5.30 pm

Field trip: Nutrition-sensitive fish agri-food systems in action [Program] [Brief] [Field Trip Summary]

9 – 10:30 am

Session theme: Approaches to monitoring and evaluating impacts of agri-food system interventions on nutrition

Chair: Dr. Gina Kennedy, Theme Leader, Diet Diversity for Nutrition and Health, Bioversity International

  • Dr. Amy Webb-Girard, Assistant Professor, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University – Mixed methods approaches to nutrition-sensitive agriculture [Watch] [Presentation]
  •  Ms. Elizabeth Graham, Fisheries Officer, Food Security and Nutrition, FAO – Introducing the FAO Compendium of Indicators for Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture  [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Jody Harris, Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute of Development Studies – Process and impact evaluation design of a nutrition-sensitive agricultural intervention: lessons from RAIN  [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Jessica Gephart, Post-doctoral Fellow, National Center for Socio-Ecological Synthesis (SESYNC) – Scenario analysis for understanding the future of fish agri-food systems: integration of nutrition in modelling approaches [Watch] [Presentation]

Q & A

60 second poster pitches [Watch] [Presentation]

11 – 12:30 pm

Session theme: Learnings from high quality interventions integrating nutrition-sensitive elements

Chair: Dr. Shakuntala Thilsted, Research Program Leader, Value Chains and Nutrition, WorldFish

  • Mr. Ravi Menon, Country Director, Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), Indonesia – Fish and the Post-Harvest Loss Alliance for Nutrition in Indonesia  [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Mr. Hou Kroeun, Deputy Country Director, Helen Keller International, Cambodia – Food production diversification as an approach to nutrition sensitive agriculture: lessons from Cambodia  [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Ms. Monica Pasqualino, PhD scholar, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University – Integrating nutrition education and social behavior change communication (SBCC) into an agricultural intervention: lessons from Sierra Leone  [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Ms. Ramona Ridolfi, Regional Gender Advisor, Helen Keller International – Women’s empowerment in nutrition-sensitive agriculture: how to truly integrate gender considerations to maximize the impacts on nutrition  [Watch] [Presentation]

Q & A

60 second poster pitches  [Watch] [Presentation]

1:30 – 3 pm

Session theme: What’s missing? Research gaps

Chair: Ms. Nomindelger Bayasgalanbat, Regional Nutrition Officer, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

  • Dr. Simon Funge-Smith, Senior Fisheries Officer, Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, FAO– The evolution of nutrition-sensitivity in FAO fisheries frameworks: looking back and looking forward  [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Richard Abila, Senior Technical Specialist, Fisheries and Aquaculture, IFAD – Women, waste and loss: the fish value chain in Lake Victoria  [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Marian Kjellevold, Head of Research, National Institute of Nutrition and Seafood Research, Norway – Food composition data: the missing piece  [Watch] [Presentation]
  • Dr. Gina Kennedy, Theme Leader, Diet Diversity for Nutrition and Health, Bioversity International – Food consumption data: the why and how for nutrition-sensitive agricultural interventions  [Watch] [Presentation]

Q & A

60 second poster pitches  [Watch]

3:30 – 4:30 pm

Workshop activity 2: Developing action plans for measuring impacts on nutrition and addressing research gaps

Facilitators: Dr. Jody Harris, Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute of Development Studies and Dr. Jessica Bogard, Post-doctoral Fellow – Nutrition, WorldFish

Objectives of the workshop activity 2:

  • Identify barriers and enablers for increasing nutrition-sensitivity in fish agri-food systems
  • Identify key research gaps and actions to address these

4:30 – 5 pm

Closing remarks: [Watch]

  • Dr. Shakuntala Thilsted, Research Program Leader, Value Chains and Nutrition, WorldFish
  • Dr. Gareth Johnstone, Director General, WorldFish
  • H.E. Professor Dr. Nao Thuok, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries Royal Government of Cambodia

Video Interviews