Authors : Samuel Danley; Daniel Laban; Olugbami Elizabeth Oluwatosin; Faith Dedan Nyari; Simon Jude Jatutu

Volume/Issue : Volume 11 - 2026, Issue 3 - March

Google Scholar : https://tinyurl.com/2s3dyurs

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/26mar302

Note : A published paper may take 4-5 working days from the publication date to appear in PlumX Metrics, Semantic Scholar, and ResearchGate.

Abstract : Micronutrient deficiencies (MNDs)—including iron-deficiency anemia, vitamin A deficiency, iodine deficiency and zinc deficiency—continue to be a complex problem in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) that disproportionately burdens women of childbearing age, infants and young children, as well as other vulnerable populations. The following three consumer staples—universal salt iodization (USI), flour fortification, and edible oil fortification—and large-scale food fortification (LSFF) have been recognized as cost-effective interventions. Despite such efforts however, progress has been uneven, with gaps and weak enforcement of legal instruments, poor monitoring systems, unequal coverage and donor dependency in financing minimizing the impact. There is progress, for example decreases in neural tube defects in South Africa and improved iodine sufficiency in certain countries, but wider reductions in anemia and vitamin A deficiency remain erratic. There is a strong equity dimension involved, notably because urban and wealthy groups benefit more than rural and marginalized ones. New solutions — biofortification of staple crops, digital surveillance platforms and enhanced public- -private collaborations -- hold the potential to address these gaps, but their long-term sustainability and integration with other nutrition strategies need to be investigated. This scoping review assesses the evidence on the applicability, effective coverage and policy implications of fortification in SSA while highlighting best practices for success, ongoing challenges and research priorities to guide future nutrition policy and programming.

Keywords : Micronutrient Deficiencies; Food Fortification; Equity; Sub-Saharan Africa; Anemia; Biofortification; Nutrition Policy; Public–Private Partnerships.

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