HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ON NUTRITION IN AFRICA: TIEMOKO MEYLIET KONE INVITES THE CONTINENT TO REDOUBLE EFFORTS TO CREATE A SUSTAINABLE INSTITUTIONAL, POLITICAL AND FINANCIAL ENVIRONMENT CONDUCIVE TO GOOD DIET AND BETTER NUTRITION

Abidjan, December 9, 2022 - In his opening speech at the High Level Meeting on Nutrition in Africa, on Thursday, December 8, 2022, in Abidjan, the Vice-President of the Republic, Tiémoko Meyliet Koné invited all African States to redouble their efforts to create a sustainable institutional, political and financial environment, conducive to good food and better nutrition for the populations.

“States can achieve the goal of eliminating hunger and malnutrition on our continent because it has the necessary natural and human resources. To do this, they will have to redouble their efforts to create a sustainable institutional, political and financial environment, more conducive to good food and better nutrition,” explained Vice-President Tiémoko Meyliet Koné.

According to the Vice-President, the meeting in Abidjan should make it possible to define a common approach to meet the challenges faced by States in terms of food and nutritional sovereignty. This is all the more important since the Russian-Ukrainian conflict has highlighted the fragility of most African countries in this area.

“The elimination of all forms of malnutrition remains subject to the control of the harmful effects of climate change, armed conflicts, natural disasters and security and health crises”, estimated Tiémoko Meyliet Koné.

He indicated that in addition to his commitment at the national level, President Alassane OUATTARA has also invested himself at the regional and continental level, in order to strengthen food and nutrition in Africa, because he remains convinced that no country will not be able to meet these various challenges on its own.

To achieve this, noted the Vice-President, it is necessary to ensure the convergence or complementarity of policies, and to continue advocacy for greater awareness. In this same dynamic, it will be necessary to act to facilitate and increase intra-African food trade. It is in this that the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (ZLECAf) constitutes an opportunity to be seized, he said. “The urgency for our continent is to save lives and provide a better tomorrow for our youngest, who represent the hope and the future of our communities and our Nations,” concluded the Vice -President. The Abidjan meeting recorded the presence of several heads of state and government, including the King of Lesotho Letsie III, designated African Union champion for nutrition.