The Regional Office for the Near East of the Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO-RNE) in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, Oman is organizing a 3-day workshop entitled “Establishing Food Based Dietary Guidelines for the GCC countries” from 17 to 19 May in Muscat, Oman, building on the Omani experience and the previous FAO-RNE/WHO-EMRO (Eastern Mediterranean Office of WHO) joint regional consultations.

The 3-day workshop will be attended by experts who have different backgrounds in nutrition, non-communicable diseases, health education/health promotion, agriculture, food production, research and academia from the 6 GCC countries (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE).

It is worth to note that at present, the countries of the GCC are at crossroads in matters related to nutrition. While the problem of under nutrition in children has declined sharply, many children, adolescents and adults suffer from obesity, frequently resulting in chronic diseases in adulthood. In view of this situation, sound dietary guidance and nutrition information and education are crucial to planning appropriate diets and promoting healthy food consumption patterns in the region. 

In this context, the objectives of this workshop are: (i) To build sub-regional capacities in the development of food based dietary guidelines; (ii) To review GCC data relevant to the development of the food based dietary guidelines and identify common issues and differences; (iii) To standardize a regional set of food based dietary guideline messages; (iv) To create consensus on dietary guidelines and visual presentation in the GCC countries; (v) To develop a plan of action for the finalization of dietary guidelines for each country; and (vi) To develop a communication plan for the food based dietary guidelines in the participating countries.