Addressing malnutrition in all its forms in Caribbean countries using a food systems approach

Abstract

[Extract]. The Caribbean sub-region is facing increasing levels of overweight, obesity and diet-related noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), while at the same time coping with a persistent problem of acute and chronic undernutrition and deficiency diseases which are affecting some countries and some sectors of the population, particularly population groups under vulnerable conditions. The prevalence of obesity in adults in the Caribbean increased from 15.2% in 2000 to 24.7% in 2016, well above the global prevalence of 13.1%. In 2020, it was reported that 6.6% of children under five years of age were overweight, following an upward trend that places the Caribbean countries in danger of missing the Global Nutrition Target of no increase in childhood obesity by 2025. However, wasting is still a problem in some Caribbean countries, and many countries face coexistence of malnutrition in all its forms in different areas, communities and families. Also worrisome is the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to increasing levels of poverty and food insecurity. In 2021, UN Agencies including the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and World Food Programme (WFP), in a Joint Statement on Nutrition in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in Latin America and the Caribbean, called upon all governments, civil society organizations, and the donor community to protect and prioritize the nutritional status of all individuals. The statement noted that the COVID-19 crisis threatened to impact all components of the food system: the food supply chain, food environment and consumer behaviors.