Accelerating Partnerships and Social Support to Improve Nutrition and Health.

Egerton University’s Faculty of Health Science, on Friday, 23 July, launched the Nutrition and Dietetics Exchange Programme in collaboration with Boitekanelo College, Botswana. The launch took place during the celebrations of Nutrition Awareness Day at the Main Campus in Njoro.

Egerton University welcomed the second cohort of seven (7) students from Boitekanelo College of Health sciences in Botswana during a dinner event held at the Main Campus on Wednesday, 11 August 2021. The first cohort of nine (9) students reported on 16 July 2021. The exchange students are part of the Nutrition and Dietetics Exchange Programme launched in collaboration with Boitekanelo College of Health Sciences on 23 July 2021.

Egerton University and Boitekanelo College from Bostwana recently jointly trained more than 20 Finger millet farmers representing seven community groups from Kipsitet area of Kericho County on value-addition of their finger millet harvest. The farmers were drawn from local farmer groups which have adopted the high yielding, fast maturing and highly nutritious U15 and P224 finger millet varieties developed under the KALRO-Egerton University Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture (KCSAP) Finger Millet Value Chain Project.

Egerton University, in her Joint Nutrition and Dietetics (N&D) Internship Programme in the Department of Human Nutrition, Faculty of Health Sciences, trained farmers in Kitui and Taita Taveta counties in improving their nutrition and livelihoods in the drylands region. Together with Egerton students, the exchange students (interns) from Boitekanelo College in Botswana focused on accelerated partnership and social support in empowering women (pregnant and breastfeeding mothers) to prepare diverse, locally nutritious foods within dry regions and embrace embracing diverse nutrition fully to offer quality diets.

Egerton University staff and students, together with those from Boitekanelo College of Health Sciences, Botswana, joined the Mangu Diabetic Support Group in a community nutrition outreach activity to mark this year’s World Diabetes Day at Mangu Health Centre in Rongai Sub-County, Nakuru County. The event, which was celebrated on Sunday 14 November 2021, was also attended by staff from the Nakuru County Health Department led by Dr. Benedict Osore. Dr. Osore, who was the chief guest at the event, is the Director of Medical Services for Nakuru County. According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), the global theme for 2021-2023 World Diabetes Day is ‘Access to Diabetes Care’.