Selling pork in traditional wet market, Vietnam. Photo: ILRI/HUPH/Ngan Tran
The CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH), which is led by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), and the Vietnam National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to strengthen their collaboration in food safety research.
At an event held on 24 July 2017 in Hanoi, IFPRI and NIN agreed to boost collaboration in research on food systems characterization and testing of selected food safety innovations. This engagement will also cover measuring food system transitions and sharing data on agricultural, nutrition and health datasets, disseminating research findings and policy recommendations at the national level, and exchanges of staff, and scientific materials between the two parties.
Under the agreement, the two parties will share knowledge and expertise relating to nutrition, food sciences, and clinical nutrition in Vietnam; utilize and leverage existing resources; collaborate on research and dissemination of good practices; provide policy guidance; boost collaboration with other entities; and jointly host seminars, workshops, and training events.
The NIN is the leading institution under the Vietnamese Ministry of Health, responsible for research, training, and implementation of food sciences and nutrition activities in the country.
A4NH helps realize the potential of agricultural development to deliver gender-equitable health and nutritional benefits to the poor.
The MoU comes at a time when A4NH is starting its second phase (2017-2022), which consists of five flagship projects: Food Systems for Healthy Diets, Biofortification, Food Safety, Supporting Policies, Programs, and Enabling Action through Research, and Improving Human Health. In this phase, A4NH implementing partners include the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Wageningen University, and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Vietnam is one of the main targets countries implementing A4NH activities related to Flagship Project 1 (Food Systems for Healthier Diets), Flagship Project 3 (Food Safety), and Flagship Project 5 (Improving Human Health). The program work in Vietnam is coordinated by the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) together with Wageningen University to implement Flagship Project 1. ILRI leads Flagship Project 3 on Food Safety and co-leads Flagship Project 5 with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
This post, written by Chi Nguyen, communications officer for ILRI in East and Southeast Asia, originally appeared on the ILRI Asia blog.
