The undernutrition problems facing the 8 countries in the region are profound.
Our application case studies are set in Nepal and Bangladesh, two rapidly urbanising South Asian countries grappling with substantial undernutrition problems.
Tackling undernutrition Tackling the problem of undernutrition, which leads to stunting, is achievable and cost effective.
"More than any other region in the world, Asia faces two quite different diet-related health problems: undernutrition and overnutrition," said the Asia Food Information Center, a private group.
Food shortages, restricted access to food, and undernutrition are recurring problems for displaced people in low-income regions [ Toole 2005; UNHCR/World Food Program WFPP) 2006].
Britain has played a key role in galvanising international attention towards the problem of undernutrition, but the government needs to target its policies on those most in need and better engage the private sector in its efforts, according to the UK aid watchdog.
Deficiencies of vitamins and minerals (also called micronutrients) are part of the larger problem of undernutrition which is an underlying cause of up to one-third of child deaths in regions such as sub-Saharan Africa and southern Asia, according to figures from Unicef.
While children undernutrition is a major problem in Yemen, it is important to analyse how children's situation in Yemen is inserted in a broader context of undernutrition, taking into account other countries or regions.
"But then I came to realize that having a deep, rigorous, quantifiable understanding, for example, of how big child undernutrition is as a problem [is] really important" as a foundation for seeking solutions, she says.
