Malnutrition in Gushegu District is predominantly the result of a lack of knowledge about how to provide a balanced diet .
In July and August 2014, thanks to a generous grant from World Vision Ghana, we were able to conduct cooking demonstrations on the use of moringa (a highly nutritious leaf) and soya beans for selected women from 20 communities. We trained the women on how to prepare twelve different dishes and they all got to taste and see that it was good.
The participants then passed on their newly acquired knowledge and follow-up demonstrations were conducted by the women themselves in around half of the communities. In total, around 400 households were represented.
In one village the attendees were so happy to hear about the various dishes and how it would boost their nutrition level, that they burst out in song: “We have farmed soya beans for a long time now and we have plenty of moringa trees in the village, but we never knew how to use these food items in our cooking. Now that we know, we will all be able to prepare healthy meals for our families!”