October 16 marks World Food Day, a moment to both celebrate progress and confront ongoing challenges in the global fight against hunger. For us a nation, once dismissed as a basket case and synonymous with food scarcity and famine during our inception, we can and should be proud of our journey when it comes to food security.
There can be no questioning the fact that over the past five and a half decades, we have made extraordinary strides in reducing hunger and greatly reduced our dependence on food aid, with our agricultural sector, despite limitations, embracing innovative and modern techniques to feed our ever-growing population.
Credit must also be given to the government programs over the years and the non-government organizations who have worked tirelessly to expand access to nutritious food, especially in the areas hardest to reach.
Yet, while we cannot dismiss our successes, the challenge of malnutrition remains pervasive and has only intensified in recent times as a result of our persistent inflation and high prices of essentials.
Of course, we must take into account climate change and its impact as well as supply chain disruptions and economic uncertainties, not to mention the actions of the previous regime - all of which have contributed to the high cost of living in the nation that disproportionately affects our most vulnerable populations.
To truly end malnutrition is a never-ending endeavour, and we must continue to invest in our agriculture as well as social safety nets. In addition, there is also the need to bring inflation under control so that healthy food is within reach for our citizens.
This day is a reminder that we have come far but that we have a long way to go in our fight against hunger.