Child nutrition crucial for Haiti's recovery

(February 02, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) As the people of Haiti rebuild their country in the coming months, IFPRI research on childhood nutrition provides important lessons, with serious implications not only for the well-being of Haitian children, but also for the country’s economic growth and advancement.

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI ) research in Haiti shows that nutrition programs need to focus on preventing malnutrition, rather than treating it, and should target all children in their first two years of life, the crucial period for a child’s physical and cognitive development. If programs wait until children have already become malnourished, or are more than two years old, children can suffer irreparable harm.

Healthier children are more likely to grow up to become more productive adults with increased earning potential, demonstrating that early childhood nutrition can be a driver of economic growth, and is a wise, long-term economic investment.

Food assistance programs should supplement their provision of fortified foods with an additional nutritional supplement. Fortified food aid alone is often insufficient to prevent anemia or other micronutrient deficiencies in infants and young children.

Improving early childhood nutrition is an important end in itself, but it’s also an essential investment in Haiti’s future.