The Ajinomoto Foundation (located in Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Chair: Chiaki Nosaka; hereinafter referred to as "TAF"), Sysmex Corporation (headquartered in Kobe, Chairman and CEO: Hisashi Ietsugu; hereinafter referred to as "Sysmex"), and NEC Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Takayuki Morita; hereinafter referred to as "NEC") are set to commence initiatives for a co-creation project (the "Project") to improve maternal and child health and nutrition in the Republic of Ghana (hereinafter referred to as "Ghana").

This project is in line with the Memorandum of Collaboration concluded between Japan and Ghana for the implementation of the Universal Health Coverage (UHC)^*1 Expansion and Africa Health and Wellbeing Initiative (AfHWIN)^*2 proposed during the 7th Tokyo International Conference on African Development^*3 (TICAD7) in August 2019. As a specific project of this initiative, we aim to promote public-private and private collaboration in both countries to improve maternal and child health and nutrition in Ghana.

In Ghana, malnutrition and malaria^*4 are some of the most severe health issues, and are considered the most significant risk factors for death and disability^*5. Malnutrition is a leading factor in stunting the growth of unborn children and infants and causes anaemia, which enhances the risk of severe malaria. Additionally, children under five and pregnant women are especially vulnerable^*6 to malaria, making it particularly important to take an integrated approach to the prevention of malnutrition, anaemia and malaria.

Since 2019, World Food Programme (WFP) and TAF have implemented activities in cooperation with Ghana Health Service (GHS) to promote maternal behavior change and recommend the Nutritional Supplement KOKO Plus®^*7 as a specific solution to improving nutrition. By further developing this project and combining high-quality testing with ICT from Japan, we will accelerate the activities aimed at improving maternal and child nutrition, and also aim to create a mechanism to contribute to promoting the health of Ghanaian mothers and children and hence sustainable and stable economic growth. The 8th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD8), held in August 2022 in Tunisia, will be disseminated worldwide as an activity case and will be promoted to support non-governmental activities to improve maternal and child health in Africa.

Through public-private partnerships between Japan and Ghana, this project aims to achieve Goal 2 "Zero Hunger" and Goal 3 "Good health and well-being" while practicing Goal 17 "Partnerships for the goals" among the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We will contribute to accelerate UHC expansion while co-creating greater value through cross-sectoral efforts to resolve social challenges in the public and private sectors.

See the following for the history and overview of this project.

1. History

2. Overview of this project

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Notes

About The Ajinomoto Foundation
The Ajinomoto Foundation was established in 2017 for the purpose of contributing to solutions for crucial social issues, by conducting programs related to "nutritional improvement through food". We have 4 public interest programs that include the “Disaster reconstruction assistance project," "Ghana Nutrition Improvement Project (GNP)," "Food and Nutrition support project (AIN Program)" and "Dietitian project in low-income countries (VINEP)."
URL: http://www.theajinomotofoundation.org/

About Sysmex Corporation
In line with its mission of “shaping the advancement of healthcare,” which is defined in the “Sysmex Way,” the corporate philosophy of the Sysmex Group, Sysmex works to contribute to the development of healthcare and the healthy lives of people. Sysmex conducts integrated R&D, manufacturing and sales, and provides support services for its instruments, reagents and software for in vitro testing of blood, urine and other bodily fluids. Sysmex supplies its products to medical institutions in more than 190 countries and regions throughout the world. Sysmex is working to improve access to proper healthcare so that as many people as possible may receive it. To that end, we are helping promote UHC in emerging countries and developing countries by making testing widely available.
URL: https://www.sysmex.co.jp/en/index.html

About NEC Corporation
NEC Corporation has established itself as a leader in the integration of IT and network technologies while promoting the brand statement of “Orchestrating a brighter world.” NEC enables businesses and communities to adapt to rapid changes taking place in both society and the market as it provides for the social values of safety, security, fairness and efficiency to promote a more sustainable world where everyone has the chance to reach their full potential. For more information, visit NEC at https://www.nec.com.