Indonesia’s triple burden of malnutrition: a call for urgent policy change

The Asia and Pacific region is home to more than half the world’s undernourished children, but also has the fastest growing prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity. With micronutrient deficiencies added to undernutrition and overweight/obesity, the result is known as the ‘triple burden of malnutrition’. This phenomenon is particularly stark in Indonesia and this IIED research report advises that there should be a closer alignment between dietary needs and agricultural policy to ensure that food production meets nutritional requirements. To this end, national agriculture policy should incentivize farmers to practice sustainable agriculture. Thus, according to the authors, the national policy reform should include a re-think of subsidies that currently solely focus on the production of staple crops. To read the full report, refer to the IIED website.