Africa Day is celebrated annually to commemorate the 25 May 1963 founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). It paved the way for the African Union (AU).
By the African Union’s theme for the year 2022, “Strengthening Resilience in Nutrition and Food Security on the African Continent,” Africa Day provides an opportunity to celebrate the continent’s socio-economic achievements.
According to the findings of the Cost of Hunger in Africa Study, African countries lose between 1.9% and 16.5% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as a result of child malnutrition. It is also estimated that malnourished children stand to lose more than 10 percent of their potential lifetime earnings.
In addition to pre-existing malnutrition issues, the global health crisis of Covid-19 has dramatically revealed the economic vulnerability of African nations and the flaws in their health and food systems.
In many African nations, preventing the spread of the virus has come at the expense of progress made in reducing malnutrition.
It is essential that these gains be safeguarded by increased and well-targeted official development assistance, but above all by an increase in national resource allocations centered on the nutritional well-being of populations, including the most vulnerable.
Recently, the outbreak of war in Eastern Europe has posed a threat to Africa’s food supply.
The primary objective of the 2022 AU Year of Nutrition is to increase political commitment and investment in nutrition to address ongoing nutrition challenges.
