THE centrality of multi-sectoral approaches to upgrading nutritional status of children has been emphasised at a roundtable organised jointly by this paper and Management and Resources Development Initiative (MRDI) on Saturday. Actually, neither in public discourse nor in government policymaking, child nutrition gets the priority it has always deserved. Whereas in reaching other MDG goals, we are moving apace, in terms of child malnutrition we are lagging behind.

The statistics sound very bleak: Almost 36 percent of children under-five are underweight and 41 percent of all children in the same age group shows stunting in consequence of malnutrition. When we have such a vast number of malnourished or undernourished children we are looking to a stunted future. So many babes with impaired physical and mental faculties conjure up the image of nearly half of the adult population being at a debilitating disadvantage to contribute to the nation's future.

But the problem, pervasive as it might be, is eminently solvable provided we hit the nail on its head i.e. we have an effective coping strategy. First and foremost, nutrition must be treated as a high priority agenda rescued from the sidelines. Secondly, the unwieldy, lopsided and scatterbrain approach needs to be replaced by a coherent and coordinated policy and operational strategy. This should involve public health and social welfare authorities, NGOs, local government bodies, communities, and in no small measure, the media for disseminating the right messages in a massive awareness-building programme across the country.