OUR IMPACTFUL PROJECTS TO IMPROVE NUTRITION

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Establishing a biofortified cassava food chain to empower women

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WHY DRC?

  • 1 in 2 children under 5 years old suffer from chronic malnutrition: that is 8.5 million children stunted because of malnutrition
  • 92% of children do not have a diet that meets their nutritional requirements
  • DRC loses 4.6% of its GDP every year because of malnutrition: These losses correspond to the cumulative impact of malnutrition on health, education and productivity
  • 2 in 3 smallholder farmers are women, yet only 3% of women own land
    • Women have less access than men to technologies & tools to generate income
    • Due to lack of processing technologies, women are forced to sell their produce at a low price to intermediaries, who process and resell it

Project Partners

UN Women : project lead

Denise Nyakeru Tshisekedi Foundation : First Lady’s foundation supporting the project

Réseau Congolais des Acteurs de l’innovation (The DRC Network of Innovation Actors) : local actor supporting the project

Réseau National des Femmes Rurales (Network of Rural Women's Associations) : local actor supporting the project

SDGs supported by the project

Where is our project?

Democratic Republic of Congo, provinces of Kinshasa, Kongo-Central, Kwango provinces, where cassava production is significant.

PROJECT OVERVIEW

We support 600 women in producing Vitamin A bio-fortified cassava (a nutty-flavoured, starchy root vegetable consumed by 75% of Congolese people), and we equip them to transform cassava flour into healthy foods for children, which they can sell on Buy from Women, a digital platform connecting women farmers to buyers. Finally, we roll out messages on good nutrition for mothers and children, which is key to improving feeding practices in the community.

How does bio-fortifying cassava help?
The issue:

Cassava is a commonly-consumed root vegetable and cassava flour is a primary ingredient for children’s foods. However, it does not meet nutritional requirements, resulting in chronic malnutrition. Moreover, when cassava is not processed correctly, it can lead to cyanide poisoning resulting in Konzo, a disease that paralyzes the lower body.

The solution:

Bio-fortified cassava – that is cassava seeds which nutrient content in vitamins and minerals has been increased. We train the women on transforming cassava flour into tasty food products for their families and communities. The cassava is bio-fortified to increase its Vitamin A content, essential to strengthen the immune system, reduce child blindness and maternal mortality.

Project Gallery of AgriFed training

The project builds on UN Women AgriFed training centers, where women are trained on food production, transformation and sales techniques, – we will introduce vitamin A-enriched cassava.

Dec 2020: Agrifed training

Using cassava flour and fortifying it with eggs to produce nutritious products such as bread, spaghetti, donuts and cakes

Agrifed training

A group of women participants cooking together

Agrifed training

Fresh out of the oven!

Agrifed training

One of the proud trainees showcasing cakes made from cassava flour and fortified with eggs

Agrifed Certificate Ceremony

The DRC First Lady, Denise Nyakeru Tshisekedi, presented certificates and activity start-up kits to 90 women farmers and entrepreneurs

Agrifed Certificate Ceremony

Participants of the December 2020 Agrifed training

Agrifed Certificate Ceremony

The training participants presenting their work to the DRC First Lady, Denise Nyakeru Tshisekedi

Agrifed Certificate Ceremony

Training staff demonstrates cassava-flour based spaghetti

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Project Details
Project Statistic (e.g. received food) :

Partner: UN Women

Project Statistic Unit (e.g. 5.780) :

Project Area (e.g. Africa) :

Africa