PHA-Exchange> WORLD GROWS RICHER, BUT POOR STILL FACE MASSIVE NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES - UN REPORT

[Claudio]

 WORLD GROWS RICHER, BUT POOR STILL FACE MASSIVE NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES -
UN REPORT

> Despite some progress in improving nutrition among the world's poor,
improvements have failed to keep pace with the overall
> climate of global economic growth, according to a new United Nations
report.
>
> <I>Nutrition for Improved Development Outcomes</I> shows that while global
gross domestic product has doubled during the past 20
> years, the number of underweight pre-school children has been cut by only
20 per cent.
>
> <"http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs/2004/bertiniBRF.doc.htm">Launching
the report in New York today, Catherine Bertini, the UN
> Under-Secretary-General for Management and former head of the UN World
Food Programme (WFP), said this trend constitutes "the
> scandal of malnutrition in the world today."
>
> The report shows that progress has been uneven, with sub-Saharan Africa
lagging behind other developing areas. Lawrence Haddad of
> the International Food Policy Research Institute, also present at the
briefing, said that micronutrient status, maternal nutrition
> status, shorter children, thinner children, low birth weight and all the
other indicators of malnutrition showed Africa was
> heading in the wrong direction.
>
> He noted that the broader context must be taken into account when
examining the relationship between economic growth and
> reductions in childhood malnutrition, which depends not only on having
enough food to eat but also on how that food is allocated.
> Other related concerns include the availability of health services and the
prevalence of disease. "It's a very complex set of
> factors that are important for reducing malnutrition," he said.
>
> According to the report, 10 million children below 5 years of age are
dying every year - half of them from preventable causes
> related to proper nutrition.
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>
> For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news