FCT Minister Approves The Creation Of Food And Nutrition Department

By: Prudence Okonna

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Barr. Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, has approved the creation of the Food and Nutrition Department to structure and streamline efforts across sectors within the FCT Administration.

Mandate Secretary, Economic Planning Revenue Generation and Public-Private Partnership (EPRG-PPP), Arc. Ubokutom Nyah, revealed this during the Committee’s meeting at the EPRG-PPP conference hall, FCTA Secretariat, Area 11, Garki I District, Abuja, Thursday.

The Mandate Secretary, who is the Chairman of the FCT Food and Nutrition Committee, said the approval for the creation of the Department, represents a major step towards addressing challenges of food security, malnutrition and nutrition-related diseases in the FCT.

His words: “I am pleased to announce that the Minister, Barr. Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, has recently approved the creation of a dedicated Food and Nutrition Department within the FCT Administration.”

According to him, this approval represents a major step forward in addressing critical challenges of food security, malnutrition, and nutrition-related diseases in the FCT.

Nyah explained that the approval is beyond a symbolic gesture but shows the government’s commitment to prioritizing the health and well-being of the residents through structured and coordinated interventions.

He admonished the committee members to recognize the urgency of their tasks, because of the statistics on malnutrition and hunger, especially in the communities of the rural areas; noting that the new department will help combat these challenges.

Secretary of the committee, Chinyere Ekwueme, appreciated the Minister for approving the creation of the Department as well as the zeal of the Chairman of the Committee towards ensuring the creation of the Department became a reality.

Ekwueme, who is the State Nutrition Officer, said the creation of the department will advance the course of improving the health of FCT residents and address the challenges of acute malnutrition in children as well as reach more people through an improved budget line.

Abuja Digest reports that the meeting brought together members of the committee cutting across different Secretariats, Departments and Agencies of the FCTA as well as partners in the private sector.

Abuja Digest also reports that the meeting was converged to update members on their different SDAs’ first, second and third-quarter food and nutrition-related activities.