André Stelder

Head of Project Welthungerhilfe

Monrovia City Hall 14 February 2013

Urban Food Security &

Nutrition

Enhancing Urban and Peri Urban Agriculture for sustainable

livelihoods in Liberia

Food Security Definitions• 1948 Universal Declaration of

human rights

• 1966 Right of everyone to be free from hunger

• 1991 UN: A houshold is food secure when it has access to the food needed for a health life for all its members (adequate in terms of quality, quantity, safety and cultural acceptability) and when it is not at undue risk of

losing such access.

Urbanisation, food security and nutrition

• Rise of urban hunger and malnutrition and poverty

• Liberia 41% food insecure, 13 % extremely one sided consumption pattern

• Urban poor very vulnerable to food price hikes

Monrovia Statistics

Birth rate: 3.5%

Population growth 3.5%

42% below 15 years of age

UPA beneficiaries:

89% experienced food shortages

Food Security Statistics

• Viable intervention strategy for

urban poor

• response to food insecurity

• provides fresh food to other

segments of population

• fresher, more nutritious food

• leads to more regular food intake

Urban Agriculture

The importance of Urban Agriculture

• More than 50% of the project beneficiaries are women: empowerment for a food secure life for them and their family

• 5000 farmers in Greater Monrovia

• 50% of all households are involved in backyard gardening

UA outputs

• Dakar: 60% vegetables 65% poultry

• Dar es Salam: 90% leafy vegetables

• Accra: 90% of vegetable consumption

• Monrovia?

Urban-Rural relations:

. Address rural-urban linkages for sustainable livelihoods and food and nutrition security (Rio+20)

Nutrition

• Fresh vegetables & fruits important component of diversified diets

• Urban farmer families eat more vegetables than non-farmers

• Local food production can provide street food vendors with fresh healthy ingredients

Liberia Nutrition

• 40% of children suffer of chronic malnutrition

• 30% of under-5 deaths are attributed to malnutrition

Monrovia Nutrition

• 1.2% poor food consumption

• 6.6 % borderline

Dietary Diversity

Low

Medium

High

Meals per day

One

Two

Three meals

UPA beneficiaries who at baseline had only

one meal per day, at mid term evaluation