Nutrition, National Development, and Planning

This book reports the proceedings of the International Conference on Nutrition, National Development, and Planning (1971), the purpose of which was to explore the place of large-scale nutrition programs in planning for national development, particularly in the developing countries and among low-income groups.The participants included nutritionists, economists, development planners, and national and international administrators, including nearly a hundred from Third-World areas. Discussions focused on two main issues -- problems of nutrition as they affect both the individual and the nation, leading to a consideration of the most feasible means of alleviating these problems, and the integration of nutrition planning into an overall national development program in nations with limited economic resources.Another important purpose of the conference was to bring nutritionists and development specialists into dialogue, to share information on mutual tasks, and to search for ways to jointly advance the goal of national development through improving the nutritional and health status of a nation's population -- not simply on humanitarian grounds but for pragmatic economic reasons as well.