GAIN marks African Day of School Feeding and International School Meals Day, using these moments to highlight how school meals can improve nutrition, learning outcomes, and local food systems when designed with quality, equity, and sustainability in mind.
A child’s diet is central to their long-term development, health, and well-being. For children, access to healthy diets can be instrumental for doing well in school, and ultimately shapes a child’s ability to attain a dignified, productive livelihood and decent quality of life in the future.
Youth in Tanzania are active at the community level but remain largely absent from formal
governance. There is potential for Tanzanian youth to more actively help Tanzania in its ambition to
achieve a nutrition-sensitive, climate resilient, inclusive food system.
We know in our bones that youth must be part of the solution to the key crises facing
our planet – but why and how exactly? Here we provide government policymakers,
business people, civil society members and development partners in the food systems
space with some ways to advance meaningful youth engagement.
GAIN Tanzania is at the forefront of efforts to tackle micronutrient deficiencies through biofortification, an approach that enhances the nutritional content of staple crops. One of its most impactful initiatives has focused on high iron beans (HIB), a locally accepted, nutrient-rich variety introduced through partnerships with schools and farming communities. By connecting farmers to institutional markets and supporting local seed systems, GAIN is creating a sustainable, scalable model for improving diets and livelihoods. In this interview, Prisca Kokutona Rwezahura, Country Director -GAIN Tanzania, reflects on this journey- sharing insights into policy, partnerships, and what’s next for biofortification in the country.
In the quiet riverine village of Khedabagh, nestled within Lalmonirhat Sadar in northern Bangladesh, every morning begins with the sound of boats on the Teesta River and the determined footsteps of a young boy named Minhajul Islam Bappi, making a difference in the lives of young girls and boys in his village.
In April 2025, we took part in the Act4Food Youth Leaders Workshop held in Arusha, Tanzania, a truly transformative experience that deepened our already strong convictions of the power and potential of young people to shape the future of our food systems. Organized by ACT4FOOD with support from the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), the workshop brought together 22 youth leaders from across the globe working under the ACT4FOOD banner, along with GAIN staff and additional food systems youth leaders from Tanzania.
The GAIN Student Challenge returns in November 2025 for its fourth edition! This unique, two-day challenge will bring together 50 students from across the Netherlands to co-develop, alongside peers from a Sub-Saharan African University, sustainable and innovative solutions to real-world food system challenges from one of GAIN’s projects.
Stunting and overweight in children under five years of age remain major malnutrition
challenges in the 12 countries in Africa and Asia where GAIN operates: Bangladesh, Benin,
Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Pakistan, Rwanda, Tanzania, and
Uganda. These forms of malnutrition appear in two of the six Global Nutrition Targets of
the World Health Assembly (WHA), which are meant to be achieved by 2025. This paper
evaluates progress towards these two WHA goals in these 12 countries, identifies lessons
learned, and offers actionable insights for evidence-based policymaking.
