Fostering an Enabling Environment for Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture and Food Systems in Nigeria.

Background: Although recommendations exist for making agriculture and food systems nutrition sensitive, guidance about how to successfully operationalize these recommendations within national institutions is limited. Over the 13 years from 2010 to 2023, there were several undertakings to strengthen the enabling environment for sustainable nutrition-sensitive agriculture (NSA) and food systems in Nigeria. Some studies were also conducted over the period to foster better understanding of the national enabling environment and facilitate effective actions. Objective: This article documents successes and failures from Nigeria's experiences by reflecting on critical developments, events, policies, and programmes on Nigeria's journey toward advancing nutrition through agriculture and food systems; as well as findings from conducted studies. Discussion: Successes include the existence of a Nutrition and Food Safety Division in the Ministry of Agriculture and an approval for a Nutrition Department, existence of an agriculture sector nutrition strategy, increased private sector engagement and commitment to nutrition-sensitive food systems, and increased funding for nutrition in the agriculture sector. Challenges especially remain for scaling up strategic, operational, and delivery capacity of both organizations and individuals involved in advancing NSA and food systems. Lessons learned include—institutionalizing NSA and food systems takes time; knowledge brokering is indispensable and requires several collaborating entities and stakeholders; and approaches used should be suited to available government capacity. Conclusion: More than a decade of efforts targeting different enabling environment factors has resulted in greater political commitment for nutrition within the agriculture sector and an improved enabling environment for NSA and food systems. Plain language title: The Ability of Nigeria's Agriculture Sector and Food Systems to Improve Nutrition Has Increased Following Policy, Advocacy, and Capacity Interventions Plain language summary: Globally, countries are being asked to ensure that their agricultural and food systems promote adequate nutrition and health. There are published recommendations about what countries need to do to ensure such agricultural and food systems, but very little operational guidance about how to implement these recommendations within the context of established, often inert institutions. In the 13 years from 2010 to 2023, Nigeria worked to make recommendations for agricultural and food systems that improve nutrition become the normal practice among relevant institutions and stakeholders. Efforts included policy, advocacy, and capacity-building activities as well as the conduct of research to direct necessary actions. Several successes and failures were encountered in the process. This article documents the successes and failures and summarizes research findings. The goal of the article is to provide lessons to other low- and middle-income countries that would like to develop agricultural and food systems that improve nutrition so that these countries are able to avoid or manage predictable risks. Successes include the establishment of an Office in the Ministry of Agriculture that oversees the incorporation of nutrition considerations into agricultural activities, the development of a strategy to help agricultural stakeholders know what to do to improve nutrition, and increased financing of activities related to the target recommendations. Challenges include difficulties in increasing the knowledge, skills, and motivation of relevant organizations and stakeholders to add new ways of action to their normal routine. There is a need to keep on doing the things that facilitated success and avoid the causes of the challenges. The commitment of the government to implementing the recommendations for agricultural and food systems that improve nutrition remains strong and the government will continue to try different methods to increase required knowledge, skills, and motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]