IIT Bombay, UNWFP collaborate to strengthen food, nutrition security in India

NEW DELHI: The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay) has joined hands with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) for contributing towards improving food security, nutrition, climate resilience, and livelihoods in India. As per the agreement, WFP and IIT-B will work together to establish a comprehensive knowledge management system.

The agreement provides a collaborative framework between IIT Bombay and UN WFP to share the expertise and resources for advancing and promoting technological and programmatic solutions.

“These solutions will enhance existing systems and facilitate the effective utilisation of evidence in the critical areas of food, nutrition, climate, and livelihoods to benefit those most,” Sachin C Patwardhan, Dean (R&D), IITB said.

The first areas of collaboration will include a micro study to understand the effect of climate change on food security, nutrition, and livelihoods of the vulnerable households in a select geography in India.

Elisabeth Faure, representative and country director of the World Food Programme in India, said that they will also take the support of senior students of IIT Bombay in data quality monitoring work for a massive evaluation of the NITI Aayog. The technical support for the monitoring work will be provided by the WFP.

Additionally, they aim to design and deliver training and capacity-building programmes for government agencies, civil society organizations, and nutrition and food security stakeholders, the official statement read.

The agreement was signed today in the presence of IITB deputy director KV Krishna Rao, Abhay Kumar, head, RAM and evaluation unit, WFP India, Anand B Rao, head and professor, Centre for Technology Alternatives for Rural Areas (CTARA), IITB and Satish B Agnihotri, Emeritus Fellow, CTARA, IITB.