Second National Strategy for Food Security and Nutrition (NSFSN) 2019–2023.

The vision for the 2nd National Strategy for Food Security and Nutrition 2019 - 2023 is that all Cambodian people have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food, at all times, to meet their dietary needs and preferences and optimize the utilization of this food for a healthy and productive life. The Goal for 2023, translates the longer-term vision into specific, measured achievements in terms of the key indicators of progress. The objectives for the 2nd NSFSN 2019-2023 are to: • Strengthen the food environment and consumer behaviours to enable healthier food choices, particularly for the first 1,000 days of life (the time spanning roughly between conception and a child’s second birthday); • Promote diversified, nutritious and sustainable food production (crops, horticulture, fish and livestock) while maintaining sustainability and efficiency in rice production and strengthen value chains for nutritious foods, including food safety, food quality and food fortification where applicable; • Improve nutrient absorption and reduce disease among children, pregnant and lactating women, and adolescents through increased access to safely managed drinking water, improved hygiene and sanitation behaviours and facilities at household level; • Strengthen community-led nutrition through coordination and implementation for all stakeholders for nutrition programmes at community level; • Protect food security, nutrition and health from seasonal, chronic and adhoc shocks and stresses and natural disasters including those associated with climate change; • Reduce remaining inequalities in access to sufficient, nutritious and diverse foods and good nutrition among vulnerable and marginalized populations, especially women and children, by increasing employment opportunities and incomes, strengthening markets and providing social assistance; • Increase quality and use of nutrition-related health services and promotion of optimal nutrition behaviours; • Enable effective governance arrangements for all FSN objectives at national and sub-national levels and build capacities to integrate FSN in commune development plans (CDP) and three-year rolling investment programmes (CIP).
The 2nd NSFSN 2019-2023 is built on a strong foundation of sectoral activities and results, overlain by a set of joint actions, with overall coordination and reporting on results by the Council for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD). This strategy is broadly referred to as a Twin-Track Approach, leaving the key sectors to manage FSN actions within their own objectives, resources and capabilities whilst CARD focuses on the priority actions requiring crosscutting and multi-sectoral coordination. The document identifies as cross-cutting issues: gender and youth; environment; and equity. In the sphere of gender and youth, the document aims at ensuring all priority actions reflect explicit objectives for gender responsiveness, gender equality and the engagement of youth. reducing inequalities means ensuring that priority actions address the needs of the most vulnerable and provide for equity in addressing FSN.
In the case of environment as a cross-cutting issue, the document highlights the importance of protecting the natural resources from pollution and degradation and sustaining safe and healthy environments for rural and urban populations. The Ministry of Health (MoH), the Ministry of Environment (MoE), the Ministry of Rural Development (MRD), the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction (MLMUPC) and the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology (MoWRAM) all have responsibilities relating to the provision of a healthy living environment. The 2nd NSFSN 2019-2023 calls upon each Ministry to contribute to environmental goals through their individual responsibilities and according to their individual plans. In addition, these Ministries are urged to share guidelines and to ensure mainstreaming of environmental concerns for all actions relating to the 2nd NSFSN 2019-2023, both at national and sub-national level.
On the other hand, the document foresees sector-led contributions. The sector-led contributions to FSN are those that lie within a single sector. The key sector-led priorities for the 2nd NSFSN 2019- 2023 are: agriculture; health; education; water supply and sanitation; industry; and commerce. The agricultural sector aims for increased productivity and diversification whilst enhancing food security, nutrition and health. Agriculture policies and programmes developed to minimize risks and maximize the benefits to food security and nutrition along the food value chain (from food production to food consumption) will provide the greatest benefits for both the economic and social development of the Cambodian people. The health sector contributes to FSN through increasing the quality and use of nutrition-related services and promotion of optimal nutrition behaviours among women of reproductive age, children and adolescents. The overall contribution of the education sector towards food security and nutrition is that all students will complete secondary school well-nourished and having knowledge of optimal nutrition behaviours. Well-designed school health and nutrition programmes will also contribute to education sector goals. In the sphere of water supply and sanitation, the focus is to ensure the expansion to universal access to improved drinking water, sanitation and hygiene services in rural and urban areas. Industry sector contributes to FSN through food processing to support nutritionsensitive food systems and food safety. Helping to create a healthy food environment, where the quality and safety of nutritious foods are encouraged. In addition, the industrial sector is concerned for the health and productivity of its workforce. Finally, commerce supports marketing including Sub-decree 133 on Marketing of Products for Infants and Young Child Feeding, and fortified products; the provision of a business environment that encourages the constructive engagement of the private sector; and ensuring that consumer interests are protected.