The Ministry of National Food Security & Research (MNFSR) has finalised the draft of National Food and Nutrition Security Policy (NFNS) intending to counter the food insecurity in the country.

Core objective of the policy is to reduce the current food insecurity situation by 50 per cent by 2030 and to bring down the poverty and food insecurity to zero level by 2050, Ahmed Bakhsh Lehri, Secretary MNFSR, said while speaking at consultation workshop on NFNS held here on Wednesday.He said the ministry has sent the final draft to all provinces and other stakeholders for comments which would be incorporated as appropriate.

Muhammad Moazaam Ali Khan Jatoi, Minister of State for National Food Security & Research, said on the occasion that by using expertise of the scientists and participants sitting here, we can significantly move forward on our agenda to solve national food and nutritional security problems.He said the government gives priority to achieving food security in the country. "Food security requires addressing the key areas of food availability, food access, food utilization and its nutritional needs", he added. He said Pakistan needs to focus on all these issues on a sustainable basis in the long run.

He said the Ministry has already started working on "Zero Hunger Action Plan" that aims eradicating hunger from the country."For enhancing food availability, agriculture research organization in Pakistan such as PARC, in collaboration with provincial agriculture research institutes and centers are working hard to develop new technologies and improving the existing ones", he added.

Chairman Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC), Dr Iftikhar Ahmad said on the occasion that the ministry of national food security is working on a national food policy which after consultation from all stakeholders will be sent to the cabinet for approval.
He said the main role of FNSC would be to ensure coordination of federal and provincial ministries and government agencies in the fight against hunger and malnutrition, and to ensure dialogue between government and civil society.

The long term goal proposed in NFNSP is to ensure that all Pakistanis have physical and economic access to enough nutrition foods on sustainable basis for an active, healthy life, the ways in which food is produced and distributed shall be environment friendly and sustainable, both the production and consumption of food should be governed by social values that are just and equitable as well as moral, ethical and uphold human dignity, reduce the current food insecurity proportion with a focus on halving malnutrition by 2030 and to bring poverty, food insecurity proportion to zero level by 2050.

According to the proposed draft of agriculture policy, access to food implies whether individuals and households are able to access the required food.The new policy also stresses physical, social and economic access to adequate food at all times. Food utilization and nutrition dimension of food security means that food is properly used, proper food processing and storage techniques are employed, adequate knowledge of nutrition and childcare techniques exist are applied.

The new policy also stressed that every individual must have adequate and nutritious food that is accessible at the required time in useable farm. There is a need to improve food security management during disasters. A number of measures need to be taken in due course, including promoting coordinated approach for disaster preparedness and management, to ensure allocation of adequate resource to disaster management and improve system of assessing possibilities of a shock.

The new policy also proposes to establish food and nutrition information system and monitoring and evaluation. Food and nutrition security information is a necessary element of national goal of reducing food insecurity and malnutrition since it helps in decision making, policy and programme interventions.