MBRGI To Expand International Partnership, Achieves Food Security Goals

Aim to address chronic malnutrition across the globe

The grant will support developing innovative agricultural solutions, empowering women and mothers, and preventing chronic malnutrition, especially among children, in Senegal, Niger, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo,reaching more than 300,000 beneficiaries, as mentioned in the report.

The report says that the partnership is a big addition to the 1 Billion Meals initiative, which is a way for MBRGI to help people get food.It will support the sustainable food safety net, delivering finance for innovative and locasolutions across food systems to achieve food self-sufficiency and promote smart individual and community farming methods that provide access to a healthy diet throughout the year.

The partnership also protects vulnerable groups, including children and women in communities most exposed to malnutrition, food insecurity, supply chain disruption, and climate change's impacts on food production and agriculture.

Dr. Abdulkareem Al Olama, CEO of MBRGI, said, "Humanitarian aid and relief are pillars of MBRGI's work. This aid was provided by our food support initiatives over the past three years: 10 million meals in 2020, 100 million meals in 2021, and 1 billion meals this year. We are now unlocking new avenues to ensure the sustainability of this food support in underprivileged communities."

Dr. Al Olama added, "MBRGI's cooperation with UNITLIFE provides more than AED 5.5 million to support agriculture and food production innovation, thus empowering more than 300,000 people, especially vulnerable groups, including children and women in underprivileged communities across three countries. This step augments the added value of humanitarian and relief action while ensuring innovation and foreseeing best practises for its future and contributing to its sustainability."

Philippe Douste-Blazy, Chairman of the Board of UNITLIFE, said, "We thank MBRGI for the strong support it has offered to UNITLIFE, the multilateral UN initiative dedicated to combating chronic malnutrition through developing innovative food-saving, climate-sensitive, and women-empowering ecosystems.

"Owing to this partnership, UNITLIFE will be able to fund operations that explore innovative solutions considered widely applicable in Niger, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Senegal, thus shaping a healthier tomorrow for today's children and future generations. Providing good nutrition to children during the first 1,000 days of life will allow them to have a fairer start, unlocking their full potential."

As further mentioned in the report, MBRGI has chosen to support UNITLIFE because its projects focus on Africa. It also develops ambitious programmes and projects that achieve the aims of this formula, including driving the realisation of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030, enhancing food security, empowering women, and protecting children from malnutrition.

In Senegal, MBRGI contributes AED 2.2 million to the integrated food resilience support project implemented by the NGO Action Against Hunger.

When it starts in October 2022, the two-year project will involve 26 villages in Senegal and give 730,000 healthy meals to 30,600 direct and indirect beneficiaries each year.MBRGI also supports healthy farm projects and dairy industry development and enhances agricultural financing options for farmers, according to the report.

The plan to support innovation in food production also includes the production of complementary foods such as fortified flour from local grains and cowpeas, supporting families in conducting community self-diagnosis of food practises, and organising nutrition education courses.

The plan also includes consolidating the role of "village savings and loan associations" to enable women to access financing, supporting farmers to earn additional income from surplus production, raising awareness of good hygiene practises, and providing water purification products.

In Niger, MBRGI contributes more than AED 1.1 million to the second phase of a project that aims to improve the sustainability of food systems and production, develop food security, and enhance opportunities for inclusive financing. Implemented by the NGO GOAL Global and launched in October 2022, the one-year projects include 20 villages and provide 912,500 nutritious meals annually to more than 142,485 direct and indirect beneficiaries, according to the report.

According to the report, the program's main goals include increasing the productivity of nutritious crops that are highly adaptable to climate change through partnerships with suppliers of improved seeds suitable for hot and dry climates, providing these seeds to female farmers at a 40% discount, and assisting in the establishment of 1,333 home and community farms.

They also include making it easier for women to make decisions about farming by giving them access to digital financing products and boosting the number of "village savings and loans associations" from 20 to 35 across Niger.

Report concluded that in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, MBRGI contributes more than AED1.8 million to a project to establish a dynamic network that empowers women in agricultural communities. Implemented by UN Women and launched in September 2022, the 17-month project will cover the provinces of Kinshasa and Kwango and provide 1,077,300 nutritious meals annually to more than 128,558 direct and indirect beneficiaries.