ASEAN member countries gathered for a consultation in collaborationwith the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in Bangkok,Thailand, on July 21-22 to finalise a road map of priority actions forthe implementation of a nutrition component for food security, theMalaysian news agency Bernama reported.

Theconsultation’s objective is to integrate nutrition into the ASEANIntegrated Food Security Framework (AIFS) and the Strategic Plan ofAction on Food Security (SPA-FS).

Speaking at theopening ceremony, FAO Assistant Director-General Hiroyuki Konuma saidthat FAO has been assisting ASEAN in developing and implementing AIFSand SPA-FS during 2015-2020.

“Nutrition is animportant element in ensuring food security,” he said. “FAO is verypleased that ASEAN is placing nutrition as a priority and is leading theprocess of mainstreaming nutrition as an integral part of ASEAN AIFSand SPA-FS. This provides the basis for ASEAN to take a long-term,integrated and sustainable food system approach that will guide futureactions on food security and nutrition”.

Konumapointed out that all ten ASEAN countries had achieved the MillenniumDevelopment Goal to reduce the proportion of hunger by half by 2015 withan average rate of 9.6 percent, which is far lower than the regionalaverage of 12 percent, and is a prime mover of Asia’s success

Recent data indicates that almost all countries in South East Asiahave a high incidence of anaemia among pregnant women and children.Among pregnant women, the incidence ranges from 24 percent to 52 percentin some countries. Prevalence of anaemia among children below the ageof five ranges from 18 percent to 55 percent in some countries.

Some of the key micronutrients typically deficient in the region are iron, vitamin A and iodine.-VNA