Conference Highlights School Nutrition Challenges in South Africa

Recent conferences and reports have highlighted the critical issue of child malnutrition across various regions. In South Africa, the Healthy Living Alliance emphasized the need to sustain the National School Nutrition Programme, which provides meals to 9 million children but faces budget cuts threatening its future. Meanwhile, in northern Nigeria, malnutrition rates have surged by 51%, prompting calls from Medecins Sans Frontieres to declare a national emergency as 11 million children face severe food poverty. In Mumbai, the Akshaya Chaitanya organization launched the 'Bowl of Growth Program' to support malnourished children, demonstrating effective public-private partnerships. Malaysia's Miri MP urged the adoption of Japan's successful school lunch program to combat rising stunting and obesity rates among children. These initiatives reflect a growing recognition of the urgent need for coordinated efforts to address child nutrition globally.