Spirulina Officially Approved for Import by the Zambian Ministry of Agriculture

In June 2010, Spirulina was officially approved as a food safe for consumption by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives of the Republic of Zambia. At the same time, the Alliance Forum Foundation also received official permission to import Spirulina into Zambia.

Photo (from left): Alliance Forum Foundation Chairman George Hara, Managing Director Aya Nakauchi, and Peter Daka, the Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives for the Republic of Zambia.

The Spirulina Project was initiated in August 2008 after a series of discussions between the Alliance Forum Foundation and the Republic in Zambia concerning the potential use of Spirulina to enhance the Zambian governments efforts to combat malnutrition. Approval of Spirulina for import will enable the foundation to begin distributing Spirulina directly to children suffering from malnutrition in Zambia. The foundation is also requesting that the country's Pharmaceutical and Regulatory Authority examine and approve Spirulina for medicinal purposes as well.

Indigenous people in Chad, a land-locked country in north-central Africa, have harvested Spirulina in lakes and used the microalgae as a source of nutrition for centuries. However, in recent years, many countries in Africa and Zambia in particular have restricted food imports due to local concerns over the genetic modification of food aid from developed countries. Zambia's official approval of Spirulina is a crucial step in helping the Alliance Forum Foundation expand its efforts to combat malnutrition throughout the continent of Africa.

Having received official approval to import Spirulina, the Alliance Forum Foundation plans to provide Spirulina powder to malnutrition clinics operated under the guidance of the Ministry of Health over the next two years. Following this two-year period, Zambians will be given the opportunity to assess the efficacy of Spirulina and receive pro bono training in the technical aspects of cultivating and independently deploying Spirulina to combat malnutrition.

The ultimate goal of the Spirulina Project is to approach developing countries not as recipients of aid, but rather as equal partners in initiatives promoting self reliance.