This resolution was approved by a vote of the SNEB membership.
TITLE Building a nutrition education evidence data base to support policy and planning in developing countries
DATE 18 May 2016
Note The term “nutrition education” as used in this proposal refers to action taken to improve food practices and attitudes, and has broad application in several sectors and at several levels.[1]
WHEREAS
- despite the growing evidence of the potential long-term impact of food and nutrition education on health, there is a striking lack of nutrition education where it is most needed – in many developing countries, at all levels (policy, planning, training, implementation), in most nutrition-related sectors and in integrated interventions (FAO 2011);
- much evidence is not well-known to country practitioners, governments, NGOs and national institutions, and to many donors who do not have the time, resources or personnel to find, assemble and interpret it, and/or to develop the necessary instruments for advocacy, strategic decision-making, design and capacity development;
- there is a need for more evidence relevant to nutrition education in developing countries, their issues, contexts and capacity needs, evidence which is compelling in quantity and quality, easily accessible and understandable, and fit for need and purpose;
THEREFORE
- SNEB urges its leadership to spearhead the establishment of a nutrition education evidence database for developing countries, which will help to identify research gaps, inform advocacy, formulate policy briefs, design nutrition education programs and curricula, and promote local nutrition education employment infrastructure and capacity in developing countries in all nutrition-related sectors (e.g. health, education, agriculture and food security, social protection and community development).
AND
- SNEB urges its members to support in principle, and practically with information and advice, the establishment and use of this nutrition education evidence database for developing countries.
LIST OF SNEB MEMBERS ENDORSING THE RESOLUTION
- JANE SHERMAN
- MELISSA VARGAS
- PAM KOCH
- JOANNE ARSENAULT
- ANA ISLAS
- SERAH THEURI
- DIANA WASHEIM
- KAVITHA SANKAVARAM
- JASIA STEINMETZ
- VANESSA WHITE-BARROW
CONTACT PERSON
Jane Sherman, Via Mastrogiorgio 16, 00182, Rome, Italy.
Tel 0039 06 57250172 Mobile phone 0039 3466914245 e-mail shermanjane4@gmail.com
PEOPLE FROM WHOM THE AUTHORS SOUGHT INPUT
SNEB members (SNEEZE network)
DINE members (listserv)
PRIMARY AUDIENCE(S)
The audience for this Resolution is the SNEB membership. The primary audiences for the initiative itself are national, regional and international bodies concerned with nutrition in development in the relevant sectors (e.g. agriculture, social protection, education, health and community welfare), and interested in the role of nutrition education, whether as providers, consumers or disseminators of data and data products. Examples are aid organizations, NGOs, professional associations, research institutions and course providers, national university departments, professional training institutions, government ministries, curriculum developers and individual professionals. It is hoped that purposeful interactions between interested parties will strengthen the international nutrition education community and will open opportunities for further research, trials and publications.
RELEVANCE OF THE RESOLUTION TO SNEB’S VISION AND MISSION
The resolution is fully in line with SNEB’s vision of “healthy communities, food systems and behaviors” and with its mission “to promote effective nutrition education and healthy behavior through research, policy and practice”. However it focuses specifically on developing countries.
HOW THE RESOLUTION WILL BE USED
It is hoped that the resolution will encourage SNEB members and other individuals and organizations to collaborate on building a database which can be put to use as outlined in the resolution, for example to advise on policy, design effective programs and recommend training approaches. Endorsement of this policy by SNEB membership will make it possible to make approaches to other organizations and institutions. Side-effects should be the strengthening of the international community of nutrition educators, and capacity growth in SNEB itself.
SUPPORT NEEDED
The exact project to be undertaken has yet to be determined, hence costs cannot be estimated. Some form of dispersed research review is recommended in which the labor is contributed voluntarily by members, their institutions and other partners. In the first phase work could be carried out with shared online documents, Skype and e-mail. If the project gains support, it will be necessary to establish the data archive and set up a website. These tasks may be discussed with partners, and seeking external funding can be included as a project task.
REFERENCES
FAO. 2011. The need for professional training in nutrition education and communication.
http://www.fao.org/ag/humannutrition/29494-0e18d2bbf4a9299faa8945f84f3e08a07.pdf
[1] “Nutrition education” (NE) here embraces culturally appropriate actions at several levels which aim to produce voluntary changes in food practices and attitudes, including water, sanitation and healthy living. It may stand alone (e.g. in schools, public campaigns, IYCF counseling, food guidelines), or be integrated with other nutrition-related activities (e.g. agriculture, food security, health, social protection, community development) and with interventions to improve the food environment (e.g. restrictions on food advertising, labeling, sugar taxes, improving service delivery). It includes activities in three spheres:
- Direct actions to influence food behavior
- Political, governmental and institutional advocacy and promotion
- In-service, pre-service and ad hoc professional training, curriculum development and capacity building