Islamabad, Pakistan-Formal launching of the Pakistan Food Systems Transformation Website by the Ministry of National Food Security and Research (MoNFS&R) with collaboration of the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) today at the NARC Auditorium for the unveiling of the first quarterly report on Cost and Affordability of a Healthy Diet (Jan-Mar 2025).
The event was graced by Mr. Amir Muhyiddin, Federal Secretary, MoNFS&R, as the Chief Guest, and attended by representatives from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), NARC, Ministry of National Food Security & Research, Policy think tanks, technical experts, and development partners.
Opening remarks delivered by Mr. Faiz Rasool, Head of Policy & Advocacy at GAIN Pakistan, revealed some of the steps taken by Pakistan since the UN Food Systems Summit (UNFSS), including:
“Institutionalisation of the Food Systems Transformation Secretariat under MoNFS&R at PARC,” he said; “formation of the National Steering Committee and Technical Working Group (TWG); development of the Sub-national Food System Dashboard; integration and rollout of the Diet Quality Questionnaire in multiple provinces; policy-oriented capacity building and advocacy works.”
Mr. Rasool underscored the importance of platforms like the Food Systems Transformation Website in supporting government leadership. “This digital repository is not just a website, it is a collaborative national tool, co-owned by stakeholders across Pakistan, that will improve coordination, enhance transparency and ensure that future planning is both inclusive and evidence informed.”
In his keynote remarks, Mr. Amir Muhayuddin applauded the collective venture this initiative was born of. “This platform is a vital public good. It equips us with credible, subnational data to inform evidence-based planning, ensuring that nutrition, climate, and food security priorities are pooled at national and provincial levels. The Cost of Healthy Diet report is a powerful addition to our policy toolkit; it helps us understand affordability challenges and guides the policy responses towards greater food and nutrition security.”
He commended the efforts of PARC and GAIN for jointly developing the digital platform and completing the rigorous CoAHD analysis, which, in his view, marks a historic achievement in commitment to data-driven transformation of food systems in Pakistan.
Technical presentation of the new launch site and results of the CoHD report by Dr. Ghulam Sadiq Afridi, Secretary, PARC and Secretary of UNFSS Technical Working Group.
Integration of the sectors food-nutrition-agriculture-climate into collaborative working models is the key to success in the future. The priorities to be taken up in the future are: Reviewing & Updating the Pakistan National Food Security Policy; Institutionalization of inter-ministerial working; Extension of tools for monitoring and dashboards CoAHD and Improving capacities at the provincial levels for data and its utilization in the effectiveness of programs.
