Ghana Nutrition
Improvement Project(GNIP)

Establishing sustainable nutrition intervention by“Market base approach with SBCC”
through genuinely synergetic PPP

The Ajinomoto Foundation(TAF)
Yusuke Takahashi
yuusuke.takahashi.e4w@aji-foundation.org

Summary of today’s presentation⚫ In urban/peri-urban areas with comparably adequate purchasing
power, in low middle income countries,
Market base approach with SBCC
would be one of the best scenarios for sustainable and costeffective (high SROI) nutrition improvement.
SBCC (Social and Behavior
Change Communication )Market base approachwith special emphasis on dietary
diversity and introduction of fortified
products, like KOKO Plus

Distributing KOKO Plusaround mothers“Demand Creation”

Understand nutrition
And Select nutritious foods
including KOKO Plus
“Behavior Change”
Behavior
SBCC change MarketBase⚫ This can be achieved through truly synergistic public-private
partnerships in local.
⚫ Furthermore, the Japanese government’s topdown initiative
through TICAD has accelerated our project and led to highquality co-creation involving many different industries.

OurOurprinciple
principle

1. Beneficiary First
2. Mutual Respect and transparent to partners
3. Durable concept
4. With Joy
GNIP’s expansion model.
Born small, grow big, self sustain

The Ajinomoto Foundation (TAF)
Founded in year 2017, as Public Interest Foundationin Japan, focusing on 4 businesses related toFood and Nutrition to contribute to solve Social Issues.

Red Apron“KOKOPlus™”

Disaster reconstruction
support project

Ghana Nutrition Improvement
ProjectAIN
Ajinomoto foundation’sInternational Nutrition program

VINEP© 2021 The Ajinomoto Foundation

Vietnam Nutrition SystemEstablishment Project１. Background

Stunting Issue⚫Malnutrition causes
unhealthy growth ofbody and brain.
⚫Missing “First 1,000 days”
are not reversible.
Bain scans of normal / malnourished

No. of malnourished children
under 5 years

Sub-Sahara

Increasing only in Sub-Sahara Africa© 2021 The Ajinomoto Foundation

１. Background

Stunting issue in Ghana

30% of 2 years’ infants are Stunted

Hypothesis: Complementary
food cause it?

koko

Rapid increase after 6 monthsof birth, staring weaning period.

koko sakora doesn’t haveenough nutrients like
protein and micronutrients.

Reference:Ghana_Ddemographic and Health Survey 2014

Respecting Ghanaian Traditional Local Food Culture,(just add some necessary nutrientsto koko,)
The Ghana Nutrition Improvement Project was started
with University of Ghana in 2009.
© 2021 The Ajinomoto Foundation

１. Background
Ajinomoto Co., Inc. started this project in 2009 to develop a Social Business Model tosolve social issues in Ghana (stunting and anemia of the infants), and handed it overto The Ajinomoto Foundation in 2017. All the processes are carried out throughPublic-Private-Partnership with Ghanaian local people to make it Sustainable.
⚫ Product：➢ “KOKO Plus”: add to traditional complementary food“koko (maize porridge)” to avoid stunting and anemia.
➢ Developed with University of Ghana.
➢ Produced by local company, Yedent Agro Foods Processing, mainlywith local ingredients of Soybean powder.

⚫ Distribution:➢ By local sales & marketing organization ” EXP social marketing
foundation (ESM)”.
➢ Affordable price with US$ 0.1 (0.60 cedis) / sachet⚫ Penetration / Education:➢ Collaborate with Ghanaian Government.
Community Health Workers of “Ghana Health Service” conduct
Nutrition Education to mothers and introduce“KOKO Plus” as a practical way to improve theirbalanced complementary feeding to infants.

⚫ Scale up➢Collaboration with GHS by nutrition education: 99districts & 9000
Nurses (30% of nationwide),Distributing in over 10,000 retailers

Source: Journal of Nutritional Science,2. Collaborations with Public Sectors
Phase 3：2016-2018 Feasibility study①：

Behavior Chance Communication, Pilot in 1 district in Ashanti

Create beneficiaries’ behavior changes
through nurses’ daily nutrition educations.
Build up a model of social business modelwith Public Private Partnership
1. Health check

PublicAcknow-ledge

Under-standBehavior
4. Utilize“KOKO Plus”
feed babies

2. Nurses’①Nutrition education②Introduce“KOKO Plus”

PrivateLocal Productionand Distribution

3.Motherspurchase“KOKO Plus”© 2021 The Ajinomoto Foundation

2. Collaborations with Public Sectors

Officialize the Public Private Partnership
Especially with Ghana Health Service
1. Collaboration with Ghana Health Service

2018 Jan✓ Pilot Project started:
Develop Nutrition Education Tools together with GHS✓ Nutrition Education & Introduce KOKO Plus

2018 Sep✓ Memorandum of Cooperation was officially signed with GHS⇒Expand Collaboration Activity Area officially2. Collaborations with Public Sectors
Why we need collaboration ?
Nurses are the most familiar and most trusted
influencers for mothers

102022/7/13© 2019 The Ajinomoto Foundation

2. Collaborations with Public Sectors

Evaluated the Public Private Partnership
Especially with Ghana Health Service
Third party (MIT) lead the dialogue, and through the several workshops
by each frame, we had an opportunity to gradually bring out each other’sreal intentions and motives.

★=Must have or prioritized goal2. Collaborations with Public Sectors

Officialize the Public Private Partnership
Especially with Ghana Health Service
1. Collaboration with Ghana Health Service2018 Jan✓ Pilot Project started:
Develop Nutrition Education Tools together with GHS✓ Nutrition Education & Introduce KOKO Plus

2018 Sep✓ Memorandum of Cooperation was officially signed with GHS⇒Expand Collaboration Activity Area officially

2. Collaboration with World Food Programme and Japanese Government2019 JulMoH✓ Japanese Government funds WFP to start
2021 The Ajinomoto Foundation“Public Private©Partnership”
with The Ajinomoto Foundation

2. Collaborations with Public Sectors
PPP based on bottom up approach needs
a lot of efforts and time and resources!>>Entry barrier for private sectors
GNIP’s expansion model.

3. Collaboration approach by Top down initiative
African Health and Wellbeing Initiative (AfHWIN) by TICAD7

3. Collaboration approach by Top down initiative
African Health and Wellbeing Initiative (AfHWIN) toward TICAD8

3. Collaboration approach by Top down initiative
New project:UN Partnership PPP-type Grant in Government of Japan

ProjectGoal

The Project for Universal “Nutrition” and Health
Coverage through Sustainable Systems for Nutrition
Improvement
To make quality nutrition and health services
accessible to all through resilience building, nutrition
retail/market-based and innovative diagnostic andsocial and behaviour change communication (SBCC)
approaches.

Term

March 31st 2022 to March31st 2024 (24 months)

ProjectTitle

Summary of new project
Component 3 : created by African Health and Wellbeing Initiative by TICAD7
Toward TICAD 8, Fusion of TICAD 6 (IFNA*1) and TICAD 7 (AfHWIN*2)～Co-creation and social implementation of nutrition, testing, and ICT solutions through“Genuinely synergistic multi-sectoral collaboration" between Ghana and JapanFurther development through integration with other projects.
WFP
Project
With TAF/NEC/Sysmex

Collaboratingwith MCH Book
Advised by JICAUtilizing IT in OPERATIONAL Level Basedon previous knowledge and research
results,UNDPProjectWithNEC/Sysmex/TAF
Fully Share
Operational
Knowledge toANY ofIT-type SBCC

SBCC
Scale upand datacollectionFuture?

Through IT, connecting solutions byMarket base approach and Quick diagnosis
with anemia and malaria

ICT and DX can connect whole technologies

Food assistance
Income Generation
highly for Health, Nutrition
Digital inSolutions
The Project for Universal “Nutrition” andapproach
By livelihood approachand Medicalareas.
Services under Africa
Health Coverage through Sustainablefood-insecurity

Systems for Nutrition Improvement 4.6mUSD

Health and Wellbeing Initiative(AfHWIN) 4.6mUSD

PPP has started horizontally,
A comprehensive and sustainable approach to maternal child health care and nutrition
improvement will be possible with new DX technology

4. Collaboration in Future PPP
To contribute to improved nutrition beyond weaning children, the distribution network ofKOKO Plus will be used to develop distribution of other nutritional products,
and our social business model will be changed to Healthy Food Platform.
Collaboratingwith MCHRB
Advised by JICA

Social Behavior Change
Communication:SBCC of mother andchild with ICT tools
SBCC＆KOKO Plus
Orientation(prevent malnutrition)

Fortified Foods
for Adolescent
women andmothers

Disseminate diagnostics technology for
rapid anemia and malaria detection

Hospitals

Raising awareness of maternal nutrition
knowledge to mothers andPromotion of nutritional supplements throughmarket based approach(Human resource development/Capacity building inhospitals)

Not only Japan, allstakeholders gather forsame objective!!

Through TICAD, we will complete quality and sustainability-oriented
cooperation in Africa through genuinly synergistic public-private partnerships,
both bottom-up (our efforts) and top-down (governments' initiative).
And actualize Universal “Nutrition” and Health Coverage (U’N’HC) in Africa.

Locally-led UHC,encouraged by Japan
New AfHWIN!
2013

2016

TICAD

TICAD

ⅣⅤ

inYokohama

inNairobi◆ Prime minister
Sinzo Abe said at theopening speech with
KOKO Plus, “UHC as
Japan Brand!”◆ Realization of oneof the IFNA
declarations:“Genuinelysynergistic multisectoral partnership”

2019

TICAD
Ⅶ
In Yokohama◆ Business orientedUHC◆ Topdown approach
byPublicgovernment
through MOUAcademia

2022
TICAD
Ⅷ
In Tunisia◆ Realizing IFNA andAfHWIN and U”N”HC
as Japan Brand!
Business

New AfHWIN! From TICAD8
アフリカ健康構想のガーナ現地での共創・官民連携の事例を切り口に、「アフリカ健康構想」から、現地主導＆実装の「新・アフリカ健康構想」へ！
私は、「UHC」を、これから、「ジャパン・ブランド」にしてしまうつもりです。（オープニングスピーチ）

2013

TICAD
Ⅳin
Yokohama

2019

2016

TICAD
Ⅴin
Nairobi

AfHWIN

TICAD
Ⅶ
In Yokohama「食と栄養のアフリカ・イニシアティブ(IFNA)」を始めることも申し上げます。栄養こそは，保健の基礎ですから，そこをNEPADと一緒に進める施策です。（阿部首相基調演説）（当時の外務大臣は岸田首相）

TICAD7の成果としてスタートしたアフリカ健康構想。ガーナでの実装例を紹介します。
（中略）日本の３者がまさに「ジャパン・ブAfHWINランド」として一つになり、アフリカの「UHC」実現を、ガーナ政府と官民連携かつ現地主導
In Tunisiaで進めています。このアフリカ健康構想で始まった「日本が後押しする現地主導のUHC」は、更に進化した、現地主導の「新・アフリカ健（阿部首相基調演説）康構想」と言えるのではないでしょうか。
私の政府は，来年開く
TICAD８の概要「東京栄養サミット」
1 2022年に予定されている第8回アフリをにらみ，「アフリカカ開発会議（TICAD8）をチュニジアで開健康構想」をスタート
催することについて、TICAD共催者間の協させます。 裾野から議を経て、正式に決定しました。アフリカ
頂まで，日本が蓄えたでの開催は、2016年にケニアで開催され知見と技術が，アフリて以来、2回目となります。
カ諸国へ移転できるよ
2 アフリカは、21世紀最大のフロンティうにする試みです。まアである一方、紛争や貧困など多くの課題ずはアフリカ数か国と， に直面しております。中でも、新型コロナウイルス感染症は、保健・医療面を始めと協力の覚書を交わしまして、アフリカが抱える脆弱性を浮き彫りす。にしています。
3 こうした中で、四半世紀を超える歴史を誇るTICADは、保健分野を含むアフリカの開発課題に取り組む多国間の国際会議として、その意義を高めています。
4 日本としては、昨年8月に横浜で開催されたTICAD7の成果を踏まえ、TICAD8に向け、アフリカ自身が主導する発展を引き続き力強く後押ししていく考えです。

2022
TICADⅧ

Summary of today’s presentation⚫ In urban/peri-urban areas with comparably adequate purchasing
power, in low middle income countries,
Market base approach with SBCC
would be one of the best scenarios for sustainable and costeffective (high SROI) nutrition improvement.
SBCC (Social and Behavior
Change Communication )Market base approachwith special emphasis on dietarydiversity and introduction of fortified
products, like KOKO Plus

Distributing KOKO Plusaround mothers“Demand Creation”

Understand nutrition
And Select nutritious foods
including KOKO Plus
“Behavior Change”
Behavior
SBCC change MarketBase⚫ This can be achieved through truly synergistic public-private
partnerships in local.
⚫ Furthermore, the Japanese government’s topdown initiative
through TICAD has accelerated our project and led to highquality co-creation involving many different industries.