MP Titus Beyuo: “Malnutrition Costs Ghana More Than We Think – It’s Time to Fund Nutrition Sustainably”
Malnutrition in children is not just a health problem – it’s an economic time bomb that Ghana will pay for in stunted growth, lost productivity, and rising healthcare costs, MP for Lambussie Prof. Titus Beyuo has warned.
Speaking at the _Breakfast Meeting on Strengthening Investment and Coordination for Maternal & Child Nutrition in Ghana_, the lawmaker and Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology said the country cannot afford to ignore the long-term costs of undernutrition.
“When a child is malnourished, the country is going to pay severely for it later in life,” Prof. Beyuo said. “Those children will be stunted, their mental capacity is impaired, so they cannot think well. They will not be able to pass exams well. They may not be very productive.”
Stunting has lifelong consequences
Prof. Beyuo explained that stunting affects more than height. For girls, it can lead to underdeveloped pelvises, making natural delivery difficult and increasing the need for caesarean sections.
“In future, if young girls are stunted, they will have pelvises that are not well developed, which means when they are pregnant, they can’t deliver on their own. Each of them will have to have surgery for delivery,” he said.
“Look at the cost of a caesarean section versus the cost of a normal vaginal delivery. These are all costs that the nation will pay for dearly later.”
He added that children with impaired cognitive development become less able to contribute to the economy, creating a cycle of dependency.
$23 return for every $1 invested
Citing global research, Prof. Beyuo said the case for investing in nutrition is clear.
“Studies have shown that if you invest in the nutrition of children, you gain every dollar invested, you gain about $23 in return. If you do not, you pay severely for it.”
He called for a sustainable financing model for nutrition, including the possibility of earmarking taxes on certain products to fund interventions.
Push for local manufacturing
To make interventions affordable and sustainable, Prof. Beyuo urged Ghana to manufacture ready-to-use therapeutic foods and multiple micronutrient supplements locally.
“For sustainability purposes, we should consider local manufacturing. The WHO is recommending multiple micronutrient supplements for pregnant women. We should consider getting our pharmaceutical companies in Ghana to contract manufacture them. Then this will be cheap, they’ll be affordable to our people, and you create jobs rather than putting all our money together and going out there to spend.”
He acknowledged government spending on health, noting that the Ministry of Health recently procured retooling equipment worth over GH¢500 million, including weighing scales and other medical devices. He said government has committed about $6 million yearly to nutrition and related issues.
“It’s because this is not teased out, we might think that government has not met a commitment, but in some instances they have even exceeded that commitment,” he said.
A call to action
Prof. Beyuo ended with a direct appeal: “Let’s all commit to feeding our children well, our mothers well, to sustain this country for the future.”
The breakfast meeting was organized by Women, Media and Change (WOMEC) under its _Nourish Ghana_ project. It brought together parliamentarians, health officials, researchers, and civil society actors to push for stronger investment and coordination on maternal and child nutrition.
