the official newsletter of the african nutrition ... leader... · to action nutrition ... issue 2...

Advocacy to action

Nutrition victories 2014

NOVEMBER 2014 | ISSUE 2

The official newsletter of the African Nutrition Leadership Programme

Contents ForewordBY CHRISTINE TALJAARD

THE LEADERwww.africanutritionleadership.org 1

Foreword ......................................................................... 1

Leadership skills – Nature vs Nurture....................................... 2

ANLP Alumni Subgroup Profile ............................................... 4

Policy Audits - A critical element for nutrition into the future ........ 6

Locus of control – a driving force of personality and behaviour? ..... 9

Reflections on Nutrition Victories of 2014 .............................. 12

Is there method in your congress-attending-madness? .............. 17

Contributors ................................................................... 21

Resilience, a quality that allows some people to be knocked down by life just

to come back stronger than ever. People who rise from the ashes (http://www.psy-chologytoday.com/basics/resilience).

All of us know someone like that, and to some extent, all of us are that someone.

Challenges will constantly form an integral part of everyday life. Governments will at times still be defiled with corruption, policies won’t always turn into action, articles will get rejected and some will get accepted. Whether these challenges arise from our nutrition world or whether they are personal, each one is real and has an impact.

Resilience then lies in the overcoming of these challenges.

And overcome we certainly did. In this issue, we share and celebrate some of the nutrition victories of 2014. Some of them are closely linked to ANLP alumni and we should keep on sharing these stories and continue moti-vating each other. However, for the year to come it seems as if we might need a double portion of resilience. For we no longer can be satisfied to settle for normality in our work environment, in our governments, in our countries. As Johan mentions in his arti-cle, we have to look further than the position we hold, and create a new way of looking at challenges, and how each one of us can contribute to the world around us.

May the ANLP alumni be spoken of as a group of individuals, who overcome the challenges of today, who never settle for mediocrity, a group of individuals who are resilient.

We are often asked if leaders can be developed. Based on the science we are convinced that

leadership capabilities can be developed.

During the 10-day ANLP we create an environment within which individuals who have indicated that they are interested in developing their leadership capabilities can do so. Participants apply in a competitive process to attend. This process is in line with one of the ANLP’s ground principles, which is that any change starts at an indi-vidual level.

The leadership development model that we use is based on a model from the Center for Creative Leadership. Leadership develop-ment takes place as a result of a number of development experiences and in an environment where there is an element of challenge, support for growth and a high degree of self and peer-evaluation.

Extensive research has shown that the lead-ership capabilities that can be developed

Leadership skills – Nature vs Nurture

include capabilities that are directed at the self, the social environment and the work-ing environment

The 10-day programme is in essence an in-dividual journey of self-discovery. We create a highly diverse but safe environment which participants enter into with a great degree

BY JOHANN JERLING

of anonymity. The first objective is to cre-ate a common experience that breaks down barriers between participants and creates trust relationships.

This lays the foundation for personal devel-opment during the rest of the programme. A matrix organisation is created with teams and then team members are delegated to committees – each with its own objective and function within the programme.

Through this process participants are ex-posed to an environment within which they are challenged to confront their strengths and weaknesses and to develop the leader-ship capabilities as listed above. The focus is not to replicate a typical working envi-ronment but to create one that provides sufficient challenge to be able to grow and

develop. Dedicated time is given for self-re-flection each day and peer-feedback within teams is given during the programme.

Another important aspect of the pro-gramme is building relationships across the continent and at the ANLP these are built outside of the formal working environment based on shared values and a shared expe-rience. This lays the foundation for a broad pan-African network that spans 33 African countries and 300 individuals to date.

For me, and many like me who have un-dergone leadership development, I have come to realise that leading is something that I can do no matter where I am in any organisation – it is not a position but a way of looking at life and how I can contribute to the world around me.


An invitation to all Alumni of the 2003 Buf-felsvlei ANLP group - would you like to share your leadership journey for consideration for the next edition of The Leader?

The 2003 ANLP Declaration:

“We the participants of ANLP-2003 gather here at Buffelsvlei, Boskop on 7 November 2003, do unaminously declare, as present and future nutrition leaders of Africa, to explore all opportunities, to be committed to nurture Africa through nutrition in order to improve the quality of life for all Africans. We affirm that research, development and community service initiatives shall be guid-ed by the following core values: Commit-

ment, Trust and Integrity. In order to attain our long- and short-term goals, we shall focus on the following strategies:

• Advocacy and social mobilization• Sharing of information and networking• Mentorship• Training• Research• Capacity building• Innovation• Collaboration”

Please email your story to Christine ([email protected]) before the 31st of January 2014.

Self-awarenessAbility to balance conflicting

demandsAbility to learn

Leadership values

Ability to build and maintain relationships

Ability to build effective work groups

Communication skillsAbility to develop others

Management skillsAbility to think and act

strategicallyAbility to think creatively

Ability to initiate and implement change

Challenge

Support

Evaluation

Share your story

mailto:[email protected]

THE LEADER 9

HYPERTENSIONACADEMIA

To build my leadership skills, learn more about nutrition in Africa and meet other nutrition professionals in the African region.

It is a life changing experience that will give you insight into yourself and allow youth to grow alongside people who become friends for life.

ANLP Alumni Subgroup Profile

THE LEADER 5www.africanutritionleadership.org

Several ANLP alumni attending the recent Nutrition Congress (Johannesburg, 2014) were asked about their current work and what they thought the value of the ANLP was. The results are presented below. Congresses present ideal opportunities to reconnect with fellow alumni, be innovative when such opportunities are presented and send us feedback and pictures!

FOOD COMPOSITIONMEDICAL RESEARCH COUNCIL

To equip myself to be a leader within my team - had an idea of what leadership was, but after ANLP I’m empowered holistically to be the change I want to see.

Wonderful experience; ideal networking platform + more so to strengthen skills.

INFANT AND YOUNG CHILD NUTRITIONACADEMIA

Gain leadership and management skills.

Networking and leadership training

PUBLIC HEALTH NUTRITIONACADEMIA

To improve own leadership skills and to become part of a network that takes responsi-bility for nutrition in Africa.

To break down existing boxes, frameworks and to think fresh, different about leadership.

BODY COMPOSITIONACADEMIA

To sharpen my leadership qualities.

To become more aware of their leadership strengths and weaknesses

2006 MEGAN KLUYTSMSC NUTRITIONWESTERN CAPE

45

2008 TONDE MATSUNGOM.PHIL PHYSIOLOGY

NORTH WEST

34 2011 NASREEN ISMAIL

BSC DIETETICS KWA-ZULU NATAL

38

2014 HILARY GOEIMANMSC NUTRITIONWESTERN CAPE

45

2014 LISA WARE

PHD NUTRITION, MSC HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY

NORTH WEST

34

2013 JOHANITA KRUGER

PHD NUTRITIONGAUTENG

29

2014 JOELAINE CHETTY

MSC PUBLIC HEALTH NUTRITION

WESTERN CAPE

40

2014 MONIQUE TREDOUX

BSC DIETETICSGAUTENG

272013 SARA PADIDARPHD NUTRITION

SWAZILAND

34

2013 OLUSOLA SOTUNDE

MSC NUTRITIONNORTH WEST

37

2012 CHRISTINE TALJAARD

PHD NUTRITIONNORTH WEST

28

| CURRENT FIELD OF INTEREST

| SECTOR

| REASON FOR DOING ANLP

| REASON FOR ENCOURAGING SOMEONE ELSE TO DO ANLP

Working sector

Key

INDUSTRY/LEGISLATIONSELF IMPLOYED

To take a leadership role in nutrition in Africa.

To become more involved as a decision maker in nutrition. Enriching experience working with like-mind-ed people from Africa. To become a leader in nutrition in Africa.


Initially, just to be able to put it on my CV, knowing very little of the course my expectations were very low…oh how I was mistaken!!!!

What would not be my reason? Not only does ANLP provide you with endless opportunity for personal growth in a professional capacity, it also ensures growth in your personal life.

NUTRITION EDUCATION AND PLANNINGACADEMIA & NON-GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION

Working in a NGO I have good access to both goverment and academia, and I have also worked in private sector. Being experienced in all sectors I wanted to gain skills to better channel my experience to better nutrition in Swaziland.

To gain experience in implementing skills in a safe and controlled environment , essential to leadership. To meet like-minded individuals committed to nutrition

NUTRITION PROGRAMMING AND POLICYGOVERNMENT

To develop skills in leadership. Have a broader understanding of working in teams. To strengthen my abilities and to be more strategic as well as using evidence based research to improve nutrition in SA.

Personal development. An opportunity to develop into a great leader in nutrition and making a contribution where ever you are place/working.


To obtain a broad view of nutrition on the African continent and to strengthen my leadership capacity to lead and manage large scale public health nutrition programmes.

To obtain leadership and team building capacity.

LIPIDS/MARKETINGINDUSTRY

To expand my knowledge of nutrition in the African context and to create a network of like-minded nutrition professionals.

ANLP was beyond what I expected. I learnt to work in a team, push myself beyond what I thought my personal boundaries were and I gained invaluable knowledge and experiences.

Academia | 46%

Employed Industry | 9%

Government | 18%

NGO |9%

Medicalresearch council | 9%

Self employed

9%

Understanding the policy process and subsequent advocacy and stakehold-er management is often seen as a

soft science and something that happens on an ad hoc basis. This is perhaps one of the reasons why, as nutrition experts, we often fail to get our message heard, or heard by the right people at the right time and why we don’t generally have impact at policy level. We believe the science will speak for itself. Not true. John Daly (2011) in his book ‘Advocacy - Championing Ideas and Influencing Others’ writes, “You need to have the science completely on your side. You need to have a policy well thought out. But if you don’t have the politics on your side, you lose.”

In the next few editions of The Leader, I will address the topics of policy audits, advocacy and stakeholder management towards influencing policy change. This is an important discussion as the world moves from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to discussion aimed at setting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that will replace them. Will nutrition be included (more directly than we were in the MDGs)? Are we doing enough to ensure a visible place?

It is now recognized that the traditional grant-making, funding or service provision practices of organizations will probably not be sufficient in resolving social challenges (Schmeer, 2000). Having proven solutions to be effective does not automatically result in the adoption of these interventions.

Increasingly efforts to address social con-cerns are not only funding direct services, but are also looking further upstream to the conditions and policies that underlie these concerns (Riesman et al, 2007). Typically, global, regional and national policies first need to be in place as they create the en-abling environment, context and priorities into which interventions are then applied.

Thus when addressing nutrition issues, it is critical to not only address evidence-based practice but also to ensure an enabling policy environment at the national, regional and global level.

Policy determination and modification is a complex political process usually deter-mined by government. Once agreement is reached on the policy topic and direction, which is typically a politically dominated process but does require expert input, it is usually handed over to a technical team

Policy Audits - A critical element for nutrition into the future

BY JANE BADHAM

that is more involved in the implementation of the new or changed policy. How do we ensure that our expertise is used not only when it comes to implementation but that we actively shape the original policies?

their stage of adoption, implementation and monitoring.

Element 2 is used to determine the countries participation in regional and global bodies/forums that address the topic and the process followed to determine the countries stance taken on the topic at these meetings/forums. This will include the steps followed in policy decision making together with the actual individuals, groupings and organizations, internally within government and externally, that are actively involved and engaged.

The policy decision audit information can be turned into a graphic depiction of the decision process followed and names of associated stakeholders for the selected policies you wish to influence. With the use of a list of policies which represent the ideal policy environment, gaps in the current policies will be determined.

From this, one can then develop a strategy to shift the policy from concept to draft, to adopted, to implemented, to monitored and evaluated. This audit has to form the basis of any policy change plan, as it informs the subsequent development of a detailed stakeholder analysis and subsequent advocacy implementation and stakeholder engagement plan/strategy.

Look out for the next edition where the stakeholder analysis component will be discussed.

PLEASE share your views and experiences with us – Have you undertaken a policy audit? What do you believe is critical infor-mation to gather when assessing country policies?


Characteristics of a successful policy:• It is technically sound with evi-

dence-based solutions that are practical to implement.

• There should be a clear policy doc-ument written in easily understood language which is legally sound and financially viable.

• It is acceptable to all stakeholders – which requires that all affected stakeholders are determined, their roles defined and they are engaged throughout the process (Steyn & Temple, 2008:968).

A policy can be defined as a specific decision or set of decisions designed to carry out a course of action, a national, regional, local or institutional project, program, law, regula-tion or rule (Schmeer, 2000; Steyn & Temple, 2008:958).

In order to shape policy, one first needs to undertake a detailed policy audit in order to either determine the research gaps or/and to ensure that the available evidence can be used to inform the policy process and thereby increase the feasibility of evi-dence-based policies being adopted.

Generally a policy audit involves two elements:

Element 1 is undertaken at the national level to determine i) which government ministries are involved with decision mak-ing pertaining to the specific issue ii) the de-cision making process followed; iii) Relevant policies in existence in the country and the associated gate-keepers, champions and stakeholders of those policies together with

References:

Daly, J.A. 2011. Advocacy, champion ideas and influencing others. 1st ed. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.

Steyn, N.P. & Temple, N. 2008. Community nutrition textbook for South Africa: A rights-based approach. 1st ed. Tygerberg: FAO/MRC.

Schmeer, Kammi. 1999. Guidelines for Conducting a Stakeholder Analysis. Novem-ber 1999. Bethesda, MD: Partnerships for Health Reform, Abt Associates Inc.

Riesman, J., Gienapp, A. & Stachowiak, S. 2007. A guide to measuring advocacy and policy. Organizational research services http://www.aecf.org/upload/Publication-Files/DA3622H5000.pdf Date of access: 1 March 2013.


Locus of control – a driving force of personality and behaviour?

BY LEON COETSEE

INTERNAL –EXTERNAL CONTINUUM

INTERNAL % 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

EXTERNAL % 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

I hope that all ANLP alumni still remem-ber the essence of our discussion on the concept of “Locus of Control” and that

you have applied what you learnt in your personal and work lives. Resent research presents overwhelming evidence of the importance of locus of control in our lives.

Locus of control is a psychological construct, a description of human behaviour, regard-ing a locus or “location of control” which influences our attitudes, emotions and even our achievements, success and our happiness. Various instruments have been developed to measure locus of control, the results of which typically place any person on a continuum scale from a strong internal locus (the belief that you can influence the course of your life) to a strong external locus of control (the belief that you have no or very limited influence on the things that happen in your life).

Internals have a strong sense of own responsibility and accountability and are self-starters, with the attitude of them-selves being responsible for the choices they make in life, as well as for the con-

sequences (success or failure) of choices, decisions and actions. Internals can best be described as ”in spite of people”. In contrast externals are ”as a result of people”. They tend to avoid taking responsibility and blame other people, their circumstances, chance and bad luck for what happens to them.

Most theorists see locus of control as a general characteristic – individuals have a general internal or general external orien-tation in regard of all life situations and ex-periences. This is probably correct to some degree but it remains a hypothesis still in question amongst psychologists. In the real world individuals are probably neither pure internals nor externals. As an example, one may be an excellent nutritionist – in the case of which this person would lean strongly toward the internal control side in a locus of control test regarding nutrition related activities. In contrast this person might register strong external related scores when other life domains are measured.

In his book “Teach internal locus of control” the author, Russ Hill, claims that locus of

control is a kind of “master characteris-tic” which has an important influence on all other human characteristics. A lot of psychologists will regard this as farfetched, while other commentators will name other psychological phenomena such as the ability to postpone, need gratification or

intelligence, or emotional intelligence, as at least of the same importance.

Whatever the point of view, there is no question that an individual’s locus of control has a major influence on their life, success and well-being.


terns, less dogmatic, and tend not to employ stereotypes in their thinking

• are superior academic achievers • are less neurotic and experience less

stress• may be more likely to act ethically and

less likely to be corrupt• earn higher wages/salaries • show more social desirable behaviour• prefer more healthy behaviours and live

longer• respond more constructively to traumas

and life changes

Based on the above (very concise) summary of locus of control related research, it can be concluded that locus of control is a di-recting and driving influence on behaviour, personality and character.

Research indicates that growing up in a stable environment which encourages

self-dependence, decision making and a proactive life orientation, fosters internality. But the good news is that it is also possi-ble to learn to become more internal and that internality can be taught. Hill (2011) based on his research, applying his “six-step verbal self-mediating Personal Achievement Strategy” does exactly this. Without yet having used and evaluated this training intervention myself it looks (on face valid-ity) a promising approach. The first of the six steps starts with “Study Self” in order to gain self-knowledge and self-insight – something absolutely in line with the ANLP philosophy of: nothing changes if I don’t change”.

Reference

R Hill. (2011) Teach internal locus of control: a positive psychology approach. Will to power press, Beach Haven, NJ.

STRONG INTERNAL LOCUS

OF CONTROL

ACHIEVEMENT

ACHIEVEMENTACHIEVEMENT


OF CONTROL


OF CONTROL

Locus of control and achievement

An abundance of research based evidence shows that internal control correlates posi-tively with achievement and success. How-ever the cause – effect relationship is very interesting: high achievers are predictably Internal and internal individuals predictably are achievers. It seems that both these are true and that a kind of circular or reciprocal cause-effect relationship exists:

Other interesting research findings include (Hill, 2013)

–In comparison to those with an external locus of control, those with an internal locus:• are happier people and experience

greater personal well-being • are more motivated to innovate and

complete work and tasks• are more logical in their thought pat-


Nutrition and Health Department of Mase-no University – a Kenyan public university. Following his training, he managed to steer his nutrition department to become the first fully accredited institution in Kenya to train nutritionists/ dietitians. Soon after, Dr. Okeyo was invited to head KNDI to nationally regulate the licensing of nutrition professionals and accreditation of teaching institutions to propel nutrition practice to global standards in Kenya.

The Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) movement is another nutrition victory of 2014 that we can be proud of. The steering committee of the SUN has a lot of ‘ANLP’ in it. With Jane Badham in the SUN ‘corridors’, we can be sure that the ANLP voice is loud and clear. The movement has signed up 54 countries so far! I must admit, I thought that the SUN movement was being too ambitious. But now, I see over 100 entities (governments, NGOs, Civil Society Organizations, philan-thropic groups, academics, the private sec-tor etc.) working together to support SUN.

The mass media is a useful tool for nutrition advocacy and for reaching many nutrition professionals. Nutrition journals and mag-

The year 2014 was full of natural and man-made disasters. Terrorist attacks in Nigeria and Kenya, severe famine in

the Sahara, disease outbreaks in West Af-rica, strikes in South Africa and civil unrest to name but a few. In this environment, I wonder, were there any nutrition victories to write home about? Is there any hope of realizing the “nutrition dream” in Africa?

Many ANLP alumni have been working hard, often in the face of adversity, and “leading from where they stand”. Across the continent, there are ‘pocket’ victories in the fight against malnutrition. I was fortunate to meet quite a number of the alumni in Addis Ababa and Accra during the Micronutrient Forum and the Africa Nutrition Epidemiol-ogy Conferences respectively. The success stories are encouraging, including that of Dr. David Okeyo from Kenya (ANLP 2014).

Dr. Okeyo was recently appointed as the CEO of the Kenya Nutritionists and Dieti-tians Institute (KNDI). KNDI was set up by an act of parliament to streamline and regulate all national nutrition and nutrition-related activities. When Dr. Okeyo attended ANLP earlier this year, he was the Head of the

Reflections on Nutrition Victories of 2014

BY MARTIN MWANGI

azines continued to flourish in 2014. Many African journals such as the African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Devel-opment (AJFAND) have recorded sustained growth this year. In addition, ANLP alumni are doing commendable work by provid-ing leadership in other African Nutrition societies.

Nonsikelelo Mathe – Co-editor in Chief of the African Nutrition Matters newsletter is proud to be associated with the ANLP. Together with her colleagues at the African Nutrition Society, they are providing nutri-tion leadership and enhancing professional networks among various nutrition profes-sionals across the continent and beyond. We are also beginning to see increased communication from nutrition professional organizations across the continent.

Social media and technology in Africa is expanding rapidly. Kenya now leads the world in mobile money transfer. We have more up-to-date technological methods of gathering, analyzing and reporting data. UNICEF is now using PDAs (Personal Digital Assistant, or palmtop computers), for data collection activities especially in refugee camps.

According to Mary Koech, a Nutritionist at UNHCR-Kenya, PDAs have enabled the nu-trition department to summarize nutrition related data faster and more accurately than in the past. This has led to the more rapid delivery of services to those who need them most.

In the current transition from the millenni-um development goals (MDGs) to Sus-

From left to right: Council member Kenya Nutritionist and Dieticians Institute (KNDI) Oscar Kambona, the KNDI Inspector in charge of Dietetics Dr. Gordon Nguka , KNDI member Ruth Mugambi , Chair KNDI Accreditation Board Prof. Edward E. Karuri , Chairperson KNDI Prof. Julia Ojiambo , Vice Chancellor Maseno University, Prof. Dominic Makawiti (holding the License), Dean School of Public Health and Community Development Prof Rosebella O. Onyango , Chairman Department of Nutrition and Health Dr. David Okeyo and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Planning Research and Innovations Prof. George Mark Onyango after the presentation of the Training License to Maseno University. (source: www.maseno.ac.ke)

tainable Development Goals (SDGs), there is a fear that the focus on nutrition may be lost. However, we can be proud of our nutrition campaigners who have ensured this is not the case. SDG 1,2,3 and 6 are geared towards nutrition and health (see http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org ) and actually include more specific objectives e.g. by 2025, we must achieve “internation-ally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under five years of age, and address the nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women, and older persons”. Well, let’s put on our work gear!

Another notable micro-victory is the fact that many nutrition professionals are now thinking global but acting local – thanks to technology and increased opportunities to partner with institutions abroad. The

revised focus of nutrition interventions to the first 24 months of life is driven from leading experts, governments and policy makers identifying nutrition as the missing link between health, food security and development.

The factors of successful African nutrition programmes should be incorporated into all our intervention programmes. These are: community participation, program flexibil-ity, institutional structure, recurrent costs recovery, multi-facet program activities, training and supervision, and infrastructure. If we loop in macro (global) – thinking and support it with local action and technolog-ical advancement, we will achieve great success.

Two notable African nutrition conferences were held this year; the Micronutrient


Forum (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia), and the African Nutrition Epidemiology Conference (Accra, Ghana). The professional networks created and the quality and quantity of re-search presented are yet another indication of our growing impact. It is the collabora-tions that are formed and nurtured at these meetings that often determine the magni-tude of our impact in the nutrition sector. (See Christine’s article to see if you can get more from your congress attendance)

Open access publishing has enabled more African nutrition professionals to access high quality publications in their field. It is now one year since the launch of The Lancet – Global Health. The journal has experienced increased access as a result of publishing freely accessible and insightful research. Many others including The Ma-laria Journal have ensured continued free access. We must continue to advocate for access to current research that is capable of having immediate impact on our interven-tion programmes.

Recently, a short, 3-day High Level Forum on International Maternal and Child Nutri-tion may have escaped notice from many of us. Following the publication of the Lancet series on maternal and child nutrition, The Sackler Institute for Nutrition Science (New York) in collaboration with Wageningen Uni-versity’s Division of Human Nutrition invited leaders from academia, government, the public and private sectors to meet in The Netherlands. Together the group reached consensus on critical areas of global re-search necessary to advance maternal and child nutrition.

The panelists were specially selected lead-ing nutrition professionals from around the

globe including Prof. Johann Jerling, director of CEN and of the ANLP The meeting con-cluded with resolutions aimed at boosting research on adolescent nutrition, heteroge-neity of response to nutrition interventions, improved dietary assessment, and scaling up proven nutrition interventions. Prof Johann commented that there are many priorities for many people, but that the one element that cuts across all of the prior-ities is the need to develop leaders that are equipped to lead change, especially in nutrition.

Increasingly, various stakeholders are documenting success stories realized after re-focusing their efforts on the 1000 days window of opportunity. In a study in West-ern Kenya, iron supplementation during pregnancy showed birthweight increased by 143g. Iron supplements are an afforda-ble and simple intervention for pregnant mothers.

We must not forget to highlight the draw-backs to nutrition progress in Africa. Cancer and cardiovascular diseases continue to spread across the continent forming the double burden of disease. As such, a ques-tion posed at the 1988 Smithsonian food colloquium [“why have we not done more when the nutrition problems seem to be well defined, the solutions well researched, and the actions required seem to be so obviously doable?”] really bothers me.

In my opinion, the trick is not only to remember what the 10-day leadership programme in South Africa taught us, but to think global and yet act local. We must shake up nutrition research in Africa. We must re-examine how nutrition interven-tions are planned and rolled out in our re-


break, you need to visit the exciting stalls on display with the even more exciting freebies on offer. Somewhere in between you have to find time to check out the posters, be-cause there might just be something highly relevant that you would like to work on in future. And then needless to say...you have to get that cup of tea! Oh yes… and find the bathroom.

Over the past few months I’ve attended sev-eral congresses. This can be both a blessing and a curse because I feel that everyone develops a mild case of congress fatigue if exposed to too many meetings in a short time period. I have noticed that for some people, this can manifest in severe SDS (or sleeping during sessions), while others exhibit less patience for CNB (or what I like to call “congress newbie behaviour”).

Now I’m not sure if CNB is only displayed by those new to the congress scene or if it is behaviour that has endured perhaps because nobody has questioned it. The types of things I am talking about for me fall under the ethics of behaviour or more plainly said, the good manners your mom

The first scientific meeting that most of us attended was likely because our supervisor forced us to go. In the

interests of our professional and personal development, they persuaded us to present our work, to start networking, and get out of our comfort zone (or in my case, the tiny cubicle where I stared at a computer screen all day).

All of these are frightening scenarios at first, but as time passed, I found myself enjoying attending congresses.

A congress can be described in one word as CRAZY, no matter how well organized it is. There are always the people you want to reconnect with and new people you want to establish a connection with. All of these connections and reconnections have to hap-pen in the 20 minute tea breaks between sessions.

The same tea breaks that you also have to use to ask that burning question that you wanted to ask in the previous session to the speaker but the chairperson just didn’t see your hand. Furthermore, within this tea

Is there method in your congress- attending-madness?

BY CHRISTINE TALJAARD AND LISA WARE

gions. Research needs to be led by Africans and not donors.

Donor driven research agendas are not always in line with local identified needs and priorities. We must advocate for part-nerships between African researchers, [who often have more credibility and knowledge of the context], and foreign researchers [who often have the resources]. The time to initiate an African led “nutrition knowl-edge hub” is now! This will help to foster relationships between researchers and policymakers, developing mechanisms to ensure efficient uptake and use of nutrition research findings for policy development, implementation and programming.

Lastly, we must TRAIN and MENTOR many more nutrition leaders. For the past 12 years, ANLP has been training and prepar-ing nutrition leaders to deliver world class nutrition programmes. We now have an army of over 300 nutrition ‘special forces’ in unique assignments across Africa.

Next year, another 30 or so nutrition experts with honed leadership skills will be deployed across the continent. However, as of 2013, there were almost 4 million African people per 1 ANLP alumni. Let us ‘lead from where we stand’ and take the initiative to mentor and train many more nutrition professionals in our ongoing fight against sub-optimal nutrition on our continent.

THE LEADERwww.africanutritionleadership.org 23THE LEADERwww.africanutritionleadership.org 19

without engaging. It can be and should be a really positive experience and there are several websites with five or ten point plans that I have found useful to get the most from going to congresses (http://utrconf.com/reason-attend-conference-rules/).

However, I think as ANLP alumni who proclaim to lead from where we stand, we should really start leading in every single aspect, particularly at congresses where the ALUMNI are ANLP ambassadors. I feel that we should act where possible to reduce these poor behaviours and the CNB mindset by setting the standards.

We should be the ones being on time when a session starts. We should be the ones utterly prepared when giving presentations. We should be the ones leading with exam-ples when it comes to the use of phones, tablets and computers at a congress.

There is no legitimacy to be found in the words of someone who says something and acts differently. There is no trustworthiness to be found if someone can’t be true in the small things to be done. May we as the ANLP alumni stand out at congresses and conferences for setting the example, and as Ghandi said, be the change we wish to see.

should have taught you about attending a congress but probably didn’t because she probably never attended a congress.

One example of this occurred recently when I realized everyone was taking pictures of the slides that the person was presenting. Before I knew it, I was doing the same thing! It was only afterwards that I thought of my own actions. I didn’t ask the presenter if they minded me taking their slides.

Is it not simple manners to ask for some-thing that is not yours? A few more sce-narios played out in front of me and baffled my mind. I guess we all have seen these actions that seem to disrespect both the presenters and the attendees simultaneous-ly and can list plenty more.

• Why do some presenters say, when reaching the end of the allocated 15 minute time slot that they have to skip a few (usually important results) slides because time is running out. Everyone knows beforehand the time allocated. Does this not reflect a lack of prepara-tion?

• Why is it okay to work on emails or other non-congress related work (which IS obvious!) while sitting in a room where someone is presenting? If someone is presenting, is not the least we can do to actually listen and respect the effort they have made. If I don’t want to listen, is it not better to just rather work outside?

• If I do have to leave the room mid-ses-sion, is it not a good plan to do this strategically between the talks and not mid-talk and perhaps sit near an exit..?

• Why do some people think it is okay to carry on a conversation during a presen-tation? Even if the speaker can’t hear, other delegates will be disturbed and may miss taking those critical notes.

• When a young student presenter is obviously nervous and makes mistakes or even presents work with errors, is it not better for those with more experi-ence to address this after the session in a way that does not publicly humiliate them. After all, they may have done the work but ultimately, their supervisor is probably responsible for it.

• When limited time is available for the question and answer section, is it not rude to ask a question with point a, b and c even though there were several other delegates in the audience raising their hands?

• Please let’s think about where we sit. I always scan the room for a place with a minimal fuss exit route but close enough so that I can see with my not so 20/20 vision anymore. I get my seat, unpack my notes and get ready for the session to start. Then just as or usually just after the session starts, a very tall or broad or big haired person sits directly in my line of sight, usually carrying on a conversa-tion with a friend. My careful planning is ruined!

Attending a congress is an opportunity to engage with our peers, to challenge our-selves, to lay the foundations for our future careers and collaborations, and to meet and get to know those people that will likely re-view our articles! It is not a show where we have paid for a ticket so we come to watch

www.africanutritionleadership.org

LISA WARE – LANGUAGE EDITORPostdoctoral Research Fellow & UK Registered NutritionistHypertension in Africa Research Team, North West University, Potchefstroom [email protected]

MARTIN MWANGI – INVITED ARTICLE WRITERResearcher and Public Health [email protected]

LEON COETSEE – LEADERSHIP ARTICLEExtraordinary professor, Centre of Excellence for Nutrition, North West University, Potchefstroom [email protected]

JANE BADHAM – ADVOCACY ARTICLEManaging Director JB Consultancy, South [email protected]

Contributors

THE LEADER 21

CHRISTINE TALJAARD - EDITORPostdoctoral Research Fellow & RSA Registered dieticianCentre of Excellence for Nutrition, North West University, Potchefstroom [email protected]

THE LEADER is published and distributed as an electronic version only. THE LEADER appears on the ANLP’s website (www.africanutritionleadership.org). Comments and success-stories linked to any of the focus areas of the ANLP are wel-comed and can be posted on the ANLP LinkedIn site.

Please send any correspondence or initiatives to Christine Taljaard ([email protected]).

DESIGN BY GRAPHIKOS: [email protected], 018 299 4224

JOHANN JERLING – ARTICLE WRITINGDirector Centre of Excellence for Nutrition, North West University, Potchefstroom [email protected]





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