Asian Development Bank

JFPR 9052: Sustainable Food Fortification for Central Asia and Mongolia
Central Asian Republics (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan)

Grant Type

• Capacity Building

Counterpart loan/project(s)

• KGZ 2007: Community-Based Early Childhood Development Project
  ADB Approved: 29 September 2003

Task Officer/Department

Ms. Rie Hiraoka
Senior Social Sectors Specialist, Social Sectors Division (ECSS)

Budget

Executing Agencies and Implementing Agencies

• Ministry of Health - Kazakhstan
• Ministry of Health - Kyrgyz Republic
• Ministry of Health - Mongolia
• Ministry of Health - Tajikistan
• Ministry of Health - Uzbekistan

Scope

The project will build on the achievements of JFPR-9005 including impact monitoring, region-wide communication exchange of technical information, multi-country training and sharing of lessons learned through project website participation. Utilizing the system effectively developed in the first project will increase cost effectiveness and the overall technical resources available to each of the countries involved. International technical assistance will be continued but on a more limited basis and focused on critical tasks related to major goals. Region-wide technical assistance for project impact monitoring, web site development and maintenance will be supported through the Kazakhstan Academy of Nutrition.

Objectives

Reinforce and sustain the reduction of iodine deficiency disorders and iron deficiency anemia among poor children and women in Central Asia through parallel attentions to supply (production and distribution), demand (public awareness and demand creation) and regulation (quality control, implementation of regulations/legislation and trade facilitation).

• increased use of iodized salt to 90% of households
• a permanent, sustainable system to procure annual requirements of potassium iodate established in each country
• increased fortified commercial wheat flour production to country specific targets
• national premix procurement and/or production systems established
• regulations/legislation to promote universal flour fortification in each country and establishment of trade regulations supporting cross regional trade of fortified flour and iodized salt

Main Project Components and Activities

• Strengthening the capacity of salt industries - aims to build capacity of salt industries and flour mills to procure fortificants, equipment and other essential items required for food fortification; and to assure quality of fortified food.
• Strengthening the capacity of the Governments - aims to develop and strengthen the implementation of food fortification legislation and regulations, improve the Government's quality assurance system including the border control of trade in salt, and assist the Governments in developing regulatory frameworks and trade agreements that will ease the trade of fortified food in the region.
• Social mobilization/poverty targeting - aims to promote public awareness and acceptance of micronutrient-enriched salt and wheat flour, and support innovative activities in the communities, that will increase the access of the poor to fortified salt and wheat flour. The Project will support an information, education and communication campaigns through different levels of media, and social mobilization and marketing by the civil society.