Improving nutrition in Gwadar and Lasbela Dr. Jassim Taqui DG, Al-bab Institute for Strategic Studies

Islamabad May 18, 2023: The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the Planning and Development (P&D) Department of the Government of Balochistan have signed an agreement for the implementation of the Gwadar-Lasbela Livelihoods Support Project II (GLLSP-II) to improve nutrition behaviors and practices for food insecure communities in the Gwadar and Lasbela coastal districts. These areas are highly exposed to climate shocks, resulting in lower productivity in agriculture, livestock, and fisheries. Funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the agreement was signed in Islamabad between Rathi Balakrishnan, WFP Country Director a.i. in Pakistan, and Rehmat Dashti, Project Director, P&D Department of the Government of Balochistan. “I am confident that the partnership between the Government of Balochistan and WFP will help us achieve our joint nutrition targets. I appreciate WFP’s efforts to ensure long-term solutions to the malnutrition challenges in Pakistan,” said Rehmat Dashti. The project will contribute to the prevention of malnutrition through behavioral change interventions on nutrition, building on a nationwide existing program WFP supports, the Benazir Nashonuma Programme. As part of the broader Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), the Benazir Nashonuma program targets pregnant and breastfeeding women and children under two through 484 facilitation centers in 156 districts across Pakistan, including in Gwadar and Lasbela. The GLLSP-II project will also support these beneficiaries and use the ten operational facilitation centers - six in Lasbela and four in Gwadar- within government health facilities.