Kerry Group and Concern Launch “Pioneering Initiative” to Prevent Undernutrition and High Child Mortality in the Developing World
€3.7m five-year RAIN project focuses on sustainable prevention of “unacceptably high undernutrition stunting and mortality rates in children under two”
Concern Worldwide and Kerry Group today announced a pioneering initiative aimed at the improving undernutrition and mortality rates in children under two years of age in the developing world.
The partnership and funding commitment was formally announced at the Merrion Hotel in Dublin at midday by Minister for Agriculture, Marine and Food Simon Coveney, Kerry Group CEO Stan McCarthy and Concern CEO Tom Arnold.
The RAIN (Realigning Agriculture to Improve Nutrition) project will see Kerry Group contribute €1.25m of the overall €3.7m budget to the five year initiative, which will be conducted in Zambia, and is the second partnership between two of Ireland’s strongest international brand names. A third party, the highly respected International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), will again join the two organisations in an impact, assessment and evaluation capacity.
RAIN is positioned to be among the few projects worldwide that will fill the evidence gap that currently exists around integrated agriculture and nutrition projects,
The specific objective of the five-year project is to reduce the prevalence of chronic malnutrition among pregnant mothers and young children and to improve the nutritional status of vulnerable populations in the region of Mumbwa District, Western Zambia.
In line with both organisations’ sustainability policies, it is intended that the RAIN project model can then be scaled up and replicated in other areas of Zambia and in other countries where Concern is working and that this will significantly influence international policy in relation to prevention of childhood stunting internationally.
“The RAIN project is a pioneering initiative and Kerry Group is delighted to partner with Ireland’s largest international humanitarian agency, Concern Worldwide, in trying to find sustainable, scalable and replicable solutions for the prevention of undernutrition stunting and child deaths. It will combine agriculture with early nutrition interventions to tackle this massive humanitarian issue. It’s not going away and simply can not be ignored,” said Kerry Group CEO, Stan McCarthy.
Concern CEO Tom Arnold added: “Commitment will be the key to defeating unacceptably high mortality, undernutrition stunting and disease rates in children under two. It is to the great credit of Kerry Group that they are fully behind this five-year project, one which builds on the commitment made by the Irish and US governments last year to recognise, with practical actions and projects, the importance of adequate nutrition in the critical 1,000 days from pregnancy to age two.”.
Undernutrition is the underlying cause of 3.5 million deaths globally on an annual basis, with 35% of the disease burden in children younger than five years.
Stunting, an indicator of chronic undernutrition, is much more than hampered normal growth; it can cause irreversible brain damage, increases the risk of contracting diseases in childhood and in later life, with consequent knock-on effects of reduced productivity in adulthood and higher health care requirements and costs. Adequate nutrition during a mother’s pregnancy and before age two makes the first 1,000 days the critical period of a child’s most rapid mental and physical development.
Zambia was chosen as the location for this innovative project as approximately 45% of its pre-school children are stunted as a result of chronic malnutrition. 3,480 households in Mumbwa District with pregnant women and/or children below the age of two years will be selected for the project, reflecting the important period from pregnancy to two years of age.
With world pressure mounting on multinationals to give back to the society especially in the communities they operate, Kerry Group came up with this brilliant partnership with Concern Worldwide to finance an initiative aimed at improving malnutrition and child mortality in faraway Zambia, one of the developing countries.
ReplyDeleteHowever, critically evaluating the annual returns of Kerry Group and the amount donated to this course one can clearly see the huge disproportion in what the Group is giving back when compared to what it is getting. For instance, the total revenue of the Group at the end of 2011 was 5.3 billion (euro)and the group has only succeeded in giving 250000 euro annually for the initiative for the period of five years. This is a big difference!!
Therefore, Kerry group can still do better so that their mission statement of fulfilling their responsibilities to the communities which they serve and the creation of a long-term value for all stakeholders on a socially and environmentally basis won't be a mere mission statement or just word of mouth.