The Government of Kazakhstan, USAID, and GAIN co-hosted the first Central Asia regional summit on micronutrient fortification, "Fortify our Future: Regional summit for improving the health of women and children through flour fortification" from 3-4 April in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
The event was co-convened with the Food Fortification Initiative, International Federation for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus, the World Food Programme, Nutrition International (formerly Micronutrient Initiative), UNICEF and the Copenhagen Consensus. Six official country delegations from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan comprising approximately 130 senior policy makers and industry leaders attended including members of parliament, federal ministers and CEOs.
The event was organised because there is critical work to be done to ensure that all countries in the region – which has one of the highest per capita flour consumption rates in the world as well as high levels of anaemia and rates of preventable neural tube defects – fortify their flour with iron and folic acid.