Date: 18/07/2006
Source: Gauteng Provincial Government
Title: Hlongwa: Launch of School Nutrition Programme
Gauteng Health MEC Brian Hlongwa’s address at the launch of School Nutrition Programme
Programme Director
My colleague the MEC for Education
Senior managers
Ladies and gentlemen
Today is a very special day for the children of Gauteng. It is a day on which the provincial government, together with our partners in the private sector, reaffirm our commitment to the eradication of poverty and to create an environment fit for children to grow in.
They deserve special attention because of their vulnerability to ill-health. It is said that while children constitute about 10% of the world's population, they bear 40% of the global burden of diseases.
Under-nutrition, especially vitamin and mineral deficiencies, is a serious health problem facing children in our country. Different surveys have indicated two out of three households in the country do not have access to enough nutritious foods.
Over the years government has implemented a number of interventions to address the challenge of poverty and under-nutrition in our community. In its first years in office, this democratic government launched the school feeding scheme as a necessary intervention to address the physical and mental nutrition needs of children.
In later years the Food Security and Nutrition strategy was introduced to distribute food parcels to needy households. Food Fortification was also introduced to compel producers of maize and bread flour to add certain vitamins and certain micronutrients in this staple food. Our clinics and hospitals also provide Vitamin A supplementation to all children under five years and to pre-school children suffering from severe malnutrition, persistent diarrhoea, measles and severe eye infection.
We have done all this because we realised that a single strategy implemented in isolation would not adequately address the challenge we are faced with. A more sustainable food security and nutrition intervention has to be multi-sectoral in its approach and must involve communities in finding solutions to this challenge.
It is for this reason that we see the intensification of the school nutrition programme that we are launching today. In this context the government also provided agricultural starter packs to enable households to produce their own food and improve their livelihood.
The provision of support for the implementation of income generating activities is also done to fight poverty, hunger and which continue to expose our people to diseases and cause them to succumb easily and quicker. While we continue to address issues of food security, the Department of Health is focusing on ensuring that the food is nutritious and is of health benefit to our people.
There is a realisation internationally that good nutrition is a critical of element of our response to diseases. The World Health Organisation and the Food and Agriculture Organisation have said that good diet can prolong the life of people living HIV/AIDS and is important in the management of other chronic and debilitating diseases.
South Africa is faced with a triple burden of disease, namely Tuberculosis (TB), HIV and the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure. Many of these diseases are caused by factors such as overweight, lack of physical activity and poor diet.
It must however be emphasised while nutrition is essential in the fight against ill-health, it is not a substitute for medicines. We believe that good nutrition actually improves the efficacy and the effectiveness of medication.
It is encouraging to see that companies such as the Johannesburg Food Produce Market are willing to join government in improving the health status of people and in building a province fit for children.
That is why today we are gathered here to re-affirm our dedication to the battle against poverty, hunger and under-nutrition. We want to make our children realise that our lives come from the soil. We want them to believe that it is cost-effective and healthier to grow a vegetable garden, eat from it than to buy to eat junk food from the fish and chips outlets.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Health, Gauteng Provincial Government
18 July 2006
Source: Gauteng Provincial Government
Title: Hlongwa: Launch of School Nutrition Programme
Gauteng Health MEC Brian Hlongwa’s address at the launch of School Nutrition Programme
Programme Director
My colleague the MEC for Education
Senior managers
Ladies and gentlemen
Today is a very special day for the children of Gauteng. It is a day on which the provincial government, together with our partners in the private sector, reaffirm our commitment to the eradication of poverty and to create an environment fit for children to grow in.
They deserve special attention because of their vulnerability to ill-health. It is said that while children constitute about 10% of the world's population, they bear 40% of the global burden of diseases.
Under-nutrition, especially vitamin and mineral deficiencies, is a serious health problem facing children in our country. Different surveys have indicated two out of three households in the country do not have access to enough nutritious foods.
Over the years government has implemented a number of interventions to address the challenge of poverty and under-nutrition in our community. In its first years in office, this democratic government launched the school feeding scheme as a necessary intervention to address the physical and mental nutrition needs of children.
In later years the Food Security and Nutrition strategy was introduced to distribute food parcels to needy households. Food Fortification was also introduced to compel producers of maize and bread flour to add certain vitamins and certain micronutrients in this staple food. Our clinics and hospitals also provide Vitamin A supplementation to all children under five years and to pre-school children suffering from severe malnutrition, persistent diarrhoea, measles and severe eye infection.
We have done all this because we realised that a single strategy implemented in isolation would not adequately address the challenge we are faced with. A more sustainable food security and nutrition intervention has to be multi-sectoral in its approach and must involve communities in finding solutions to this challenge.
It is for this reason that we see the intensification of the school nutrition programme that we are launching today. In this context the government also provided agricultural starter packs to enable households to produce their own food and improve their livelihood.
The provision of support for the implementation of income generating activities is also done to fight poverty, hunger and which continue to expose our people to diseases and cause them to succumb easily and quicker. While we continue to address issues of food security, the Department of Health is focusing on ensuring that the food is nutritious and is of health benefit to our people.
There is a realisation internationally that good nutrition is a critical of element of our response to diseases. The World Health Organisation and the Food and Agriculture Organisation have said that good diet can prolong the life of people living HIV/AIDS and is important in the management of other chronic and debilitating diseases.
South Africa is faced with a triple burden of disease, namely Tuberculosis (TB), HIV and the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure. Many of these diseases are caused by factors such as overweight, lack of physical activity and poor diet.
It must however be emphasised while nutrition is essential in the fight against ill-health, it is not a substitute for medicines. We believe that good nutrition actually improves the efficacy and the effectiveness of medication.
It is encouraging to see that companies such as the Johannesburg Food Produce Market are willing to join government in improving the health status of people and in building a province fit for children.
That is why today we are gathered here to re-affirm our dedication to the battle against poverty, hunger and under-nutrition. We want to make our children realise that our lives come from the soil. We want them to believe that it is cost-effective and healthier to grow a vegetable garden, eat from it than to buy to eat junk food from the fish and chips outlets.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Health, Gauteng Provincial Government
18 July 2006
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