Food Fortification Must Be Expanded, Food Minister Tells KIB Seminar in Dhaka
Food Minister Afroza Khanam has stressed expanding food fortification — adding vitamins and minerals to food — to meet the nutritional needs of the country's people. She was speaking as chief guest at a seminar at the conference room of the Krishibid Institution Bangladesh in Dhaka on Wednesday.
The seminar, organised by the Fortification Alliance of Bangladesh, was titled 'Strengthening Public-Private Partnership for Fortification in Bangladesh'. The minister called for greater coordination between government and private institutions, public awareness, and implementation of plans within set timelines.
The food minister said food is a basic human need and a universal human right. Under the constitution, arranging the basic needs of citizens is one of the state's main duties, and the government is working to ensure safe, nutritious and quality food for every person, she said.
Government initiatives alone will not be enough to reach that goal, she said. The private sector, development partners, researchers and related institutions must also come forward in a coordinated way.
She also said the country's food system needs to be made more effective, modern and suited to public health. Coordinated initiatives are especially urgent to meet the needs of groups at nutritional risk, including women and children, she noted.
The government is implementing various initiatives to ensure food and nutrition security, the minister added. To take their benefits to the people, work through public-private partnership must widen, decisions must be realistic and draw on stakeholders' views and experience, and progress must be reviewed so targets are met on time.
Special guest Mir Shahe Alam, state minister for local government, rural development and cooperatives, said bringing the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution, the Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection and the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh under the Food Ministry would make coordination and implementation easier, and he called for steps in that direction.
Bhai Thapa gave the welcome address at the event. Dr Tahmid Ahmed presented the keynote paper at the seminar, moderated by Dr Rudaba Khandaker. The panel discussion included Food Directorate Director General Md Jasim Uddin Khan, Bangladesh Food Safety Authority member Anwarul Islam, Tanvir Ahmed, Md Osman Haruni, Faria Shabnam and Zakir Ibne Hai.
Speakers at the discussion stressed public awareness, work planning and coordinated efforts by government and private stakeholders to make food fortification more effective. They said cooperation among related institutions, from policymaking to implementation, must increase for the programme to be sustainable and fruitful.
