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What is VITAA? Pioneered and led by the International Potato Center (CIP), the Vitamin A Partnership for Africa (VITAA) is promoting the increased production, use and consumption of orange-fleshed sweetpotatoes (OFSP). The partnership includes more than 50 agencies from the health, nutrition and agricultural sectors, working together in more than ten partner countries in the SSA region. More than 3 million children under the age of five suffer from vitamin A-related blindness in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This deficiency is also one of the leading causes of early childhood death, and a major risk factor for pregnant women in Africa. One of the easiest ways to introduce more vitamin A into the diet is to eat orange-fleshed sweetpotato. This type of sweetpotato is rich in beta-carotenes that the body converts easily into vitamin A, they are easy to grow and the average consumer can afford them. Adding 100 g of the sweetpotato to the daily diet can prevent vitamin A deficiency in children, dramatically reduce maternal mortality and lower the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS. read more |
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Success stories from the field
Innovation to tap high demand for orange fleshed sweetpotato program
Nju ku Nju literally meaning “House to house” is a code name of a program by Mr. Hakim Ssali, a resident of Kayunga district in Uganda, where he moves from house to house telling farmers about the importance of OFSP. read more
