Supporting a global strategy for folate
A recent technical consultation convened by the Micronutrient Forum – whose Secretariat was hosted by Nutrition International between 2011 – 2017 – led to the development of a Roadmap for Action to advance and accelerate neural tube defects prevention globally. To advance the recommendations featured in this roadmap, Nutrition International has assembled a Folate Task Team, which will coordinate activities for the advancement of the implementation agenda to reduce folate-responsive neural tube defects.
The Folate Task Team is leading an expert advisory group and a core working group, and benefits from the experience and collaboration of selected global partners. Working together, these experts will:
- Facilitate access to the scientific and technical conclusions of the Roadmap for Action and folate-related knowledge products,
- Conduct a landscape analysis to prioritize countries where actions to reduce folate-sensitive neural tube defects are more needed and more likely to show impact,
- Build laboratory capacity in selected number of low and middle income countries to assess folate status, and
- Support research to further inform the activities towards the global action plan.