Developing Countries

SASS (Sustainable Agri-food System Strategies project)
It is an international and multidisciplinary project funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research, that operates in two specific area of the Sub-Saharan Africa: Kenya and Tanzania. The team is composed by the University of Milan-Bicocca (PI), the University of Pavia, the “Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore” of Piacenza and the University of Gastronomic Sciences of Pollenzo, coordinated by the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM). Thanks to the multidisciplinary approach the project allows analyzing the same local food systems from different perspectives (clinical, biological, socio-economical, agro-botanical, microbiological, anthropological), acknowledging the importance of a cross-sectional model of analysis, with different integrated skills working together towards common final aims. The SASS Project aims to create knowledge, policy dialogue and partnerships to implementing Sustainable Food Systems, supporting public policies and investments in Africa, Europe and at the global level. The objective is to develop guidelines, that could represent a start point for future research and governance strategies, through the assess the role that Neglected and Underutilized Species (NUS) could play to make local agri-food systems more sustainable. In this context the Laboratory of Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition, Department of Public Health, Experimental and Forensic Medicine University of Pavia (Italy) focused its research line on childbearing-age women (15-49 years old) living in the peri-urban and urban district of Arusha to evaluate their food habits and the food knowledge of the sample.

PUBBLICAZIONI

  1. Conti MV, Gnesi M, De Giuseppe R, Cena H. The development of a food knowledge questionnaire for Tanzanian women of childbearing age. Nutrition. 2021 Oct;90:111218. doi: 10.1016/j.nut.2021.111218. Epub 2021 Mar 3. PMID: 34224980. PubMed
  2. Conti MV, De Giuseppe R, Monti MC, Mkindi AG, Mshanga NH, Ceppi S, Msuya J, Cena H. Indigenous vegetables: a sustainable approach to improve micronutrient adequacy in Tanzanian women of childbearing age. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2021 Oct;75(10):1475-1482. doi: 10.1038/s41430-021-00865-x. Epub 2021 Feb 2. PMID: 33531639. PubMed
  3. Conti MV, Gnesi M, De Giuseppe R, Giampieri F, Monti MC, Mshanga N, Kinabo J, Msuya J, Cena H. Validation of a Food Knowledge Questionnaire on Tanzanian Women of Childbearing Age. Nutrients. 2022 Feb 7;14(3):691. doi: 10.3390/nu14030691. PMID: 35277050; PMCID: PMC8840700. PubMed Central
  4. Conti MV, Gnesi M, Mshanga N, De Giuseppe R, Giampieri F, Cena H. Food knowledge level among Tanzanian women of childbearing age: developing a score for the food knowledge questionnaire. J Nutr Sci. 2023 Apr 4;12:e42. doi: 10.1017/jns.2023.28. PMID: 37123387; PMCID: PMC10131052. PubMed Central
  5. Final Report SASS

FONDI
Special supplementary fund for research, FISR. CUP: H42F16002450001. 2017

TANY VAO
It is a people-centered and cross-sectoral project, aiming to improve the health condition and livelihoods of the inhabitants of two rural communities in the north-west of Madagascar, for a total of 700 people. This will be achieved by providing access to WASH facilities, improved nutrition, and a safer domestic environment. In particular, the project will:

  • Reduce the prevalence of water-borne diseases through access to clean water, sanitation, and the promotion of good hygiene practices.
  • Reduce malnutrition by introducing sustainable organic gardens aimed at increasing food provision and dietary diversity.
  • Reduce the incidence of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases (COPD) through access to improved cooking methods.

The lack of basic services exposes the population to health-related risks, in addition to social and environmental ones. The proposed project, which will be a two-year continuation of the WASH programme initiated by H4O, Help for Optimism in 2018, will entail a holistic approach focusing on the following sectors: WASH, Food & Nutrition, and Clean Cooking.

Nosy Mitsio inhabitants are highly vulnerable to faecal-oral diseases and respiratory diseases due to the absence of WASH infrastructures and the use of indoor open fires. The project therefore aims to provide access to clean drinking water, ecological sanitation, and improved cookstoves.

Furthermore, in order to ameliorate health conditions, the project will focus on reducing malnutrition by identifying the criticalities of the local diet and using them to shape the development of climate-smart agricultural practices. Thanks to training and awareness-raising activities, the project will promote community development and empower the population to be self-sufficient.

The direct beneficiaries of the project will be 700 inhabitants of the island, with a strong focus on children and women. The latter will play a central role in the implementation of the project and will benefit from enhanced opportunities for inclusion and empowerment.

More info: Tany Vao

PUBBLICAZIONI
Conti MV, Itani L, Beretta A, Yaghi K, Filosa A, Monti C, Cena H. An overview of the nutritional status of childbearing age women, children and adolescents living in a rural area of Madagascar: preliminary results of the Tany Vao project. Public Health Nutr. 2024 Jan 29;27(1):e52. doi: 10.1017/S1368980024000259. PMID: 38282033; PMCID: PMC10882536. PubMed Central

FONDI
Progetto cofinanziato da Chiesa evangelica Valdese 2021 e Fondazione Peppino Vismara, 2021.

ACTION PROJECT (Nakuru, Kenya: local seeds valorization and nutritional education)
The global food emergency has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the pandemic, Sub-Saharan Africa was one of the most food-insecure regions, expected to be home to more than half of the world chronic malnutrition.

There is an urgent need for actions that can help building novel resilient food systems locally adapted to prevent any economic impact resulting from the existing/future crises.
Legumes represent a sustainable solution to improve nutrition quality. More than 80% of Kenya’s economy is dependent on agriculture that has a relevant role in food security/employment/income generation.

The project focuses on communities indigenous Maasai and Ogiek present in Nakuru County, particular attention is given to small farmers with a maximum capacity of 2 ha of land. They mostly practice mixed agriculture, which includes the cultivation of local crops and livestock breeding.

By promoting sustainable agriculture that is based on local varieties and crops resilient to climate change, the project also aims to raise awareness about the positive impact on the health of individuals and the community, trying to counteract the current dynamics of market supply and demand which continue to pay very little attention to agroecological products.

PUBBLICAZIONI
Conti MV, Gnesi M, Zelaschi N, Yaghi K, Ghazi L, Cena H. A new methodology to structure a nutrition educational course: the results of a short-term educational-intervention pilot study. Journal of Nutritional Science. 2023;12:e70. doi: 10.1017/jns.2023.55. Cambridge

FONDI
Cariplo Factory, Coopen 2021 call – Food and sustainable agriculture. (CUP: F15F2100215000.)

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