The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) is a Swiss-based foundation launched in 2002 to confront the human suffering triggered by malnutrition. The organization mobilizes public-private partnership, support countries financially and technically to deliver nutritious foods to vulnerable people and contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. GAIN is working in many countries, including East African countries Tanzania, Kenya, and Rwanda.
GAIN defined nutritious food as “food that in the context where it is consumed and by the individual that consumes it, provides beneficial nutrients (e.g., vitamins, major and trace minerals, essential amino acids, essential fatty acids, dietary fibers) and minimizes potentially harmful elements (e.g., anti-nutrients, high quantities of saturated fats and sugars).”
On the contrary, when the body does not get the right amount of the vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients it needs to maintain healthy tissues and organ function develop Malnutrition condition. Malnutrition caused by the interaction of poor quality diets and poor health environments and is noticeable in different ways including poor child growth (stunting, wasting and underweight), micronutrient deficiencies (lack of vitamins and minerals), overweight and obesity (excess weight or body fat) and non-communicable diseases (such as diabetes or heart diseases).
GAIN’s mission; To advance nutrition outcomes by improving the consumption of nutritious and safe food for all people, especially the most vulnerable to malnutrition.
GAIN is focusing on the three interlinked strategic objectives:
- to improve the demand for safe and nutritious foods;
- to increase the availability and affordability of safe and nutritious foods;
- to strengthen the enabling environment to improve the consumption of safe and nutritious foods.
GAIN, together with HarvestPlus, launched a partnership in 2018 to accelerate progress in improving access to essential vitamins and minerals for vulnerable people in order to tackle hidden hunger by bringing the benefits of nutrient-rich biofortified foods to a billion consumers.
GAIN and HarvestPlus will work to commercialize these nutrient-enriched crops to expand their reach and build on the current HarvestPlus success, which is already reaching 50 million people living in smallholder farming households.