Introduction

Centre for Food and Adequate Living Rights (CEFROHT) with support from International Development Law Organization (IDLO), is implementing a project to promote healthy diets through legal empowerment and social accountability mechanisms, using human rights-based, participatory, and multi-sectoral approach. The goal of the project is to contribute to an enabling environment supportive of regulatory and fiscal measures that promote healthy diets by working across sectors and engaging communities.

The foregoing is based on the fact that NCDs are contributing to 4 million deaths globally, which is mainly due to unhealthy lifestyle choices such as feeding on unhealthy diet high in fats, sugar & salt, play a big role.^[1]According to World Health Organization (NCD Uganda country Profile 2018), NCDs in Uganda are estimated to account for 33% of all deaths.

The food industry which is the most producer of unhealthy diets, highly targets Children who they influence primarily through three markets: the primary market, as consumers in their own right; the parental market, as children play a major role in influencing what their parents buy, referred to as ‘pester power’ or kid-fluence; and the future market, as children are likely to stick to the consumption habits they acquired as children when they grow older.

Although this is the case, there is need to continually create awareness among the government, non-state actors and the general public of how diet is causing premature deaths.  The food and drink industry enjoy commercial liberty with very minimal  restrictions, and as a  result, food companies’ advertisements promote foods high in fats, sugar and salt, consumption of which should be limited as part of a healthy diet.(WHO 2006).

JUSTIFICATION

CEFROHT has organized a training on promotion of the right to healthy diets for Media Personnel. This will include aspects of effective and evidence-based communication on regulatory and fiscal measures on healthy diets, using a the human rights-based approach and social accountability mechanism.

This training will involve legal empowerment on the right to health and right to food to advance legal strategies to promote healthy diets and physical activity. The media will also be engaged on their role as media personnel to put forward the need for regulation of the food industry through food policies, fiscal measure and laws to promote healthy diets and prevent NCDs.

Objectives of the training.

To build media capacity to  appreciate how food and dietary aspects cause premature deaths, and to promote the right to healthy diets and prevention of NCDs .

Specific objectives

1. To train the media personnel on how to report using a human rights based approach to contribute to behavioral change and protects citizens from unhealthy foods and beverages.
2. To legally empower media personnel on the right to healthy diets to advance legal strategies to promote healthy diets and physical activity.
3. To engage media on effective and evidence-based communication to put forward the need for regulation of the food industry through food policies, fiscal measure and laws to promote healthy diets and prevent NCDs.
4. Train media personnel on legal and appropriate reporting on healthy diets and how to use their platforms for advocacy.

[1] ‘100,000 Ugandans die of non-communicable diseases annually’ By Chris Kiwawulo, Paul Kiwuuwa 4th October 2018 03:50 PM