VOTE DR BRAI FOR NSN PRESIDENT

Tested! Trusted!! True!!!


Positions so far held in NSN


1. National Publicity Secretary (2005 – 2006)


2. National General Secretary (2007 – 2008; 2009 – 2010)


3. Secretary, Local Organizing Committee, 2nd Federation of African Nutrition Societies (FANUS) Congress 2011


4. Ex-Officio member of council (2011 – 2012; 2013 – 2014)


5. Vice President (South) (2015 till date)


6. Chairman, Scientific & Technical Committee (2009 – till date).


7. Fundraising Committee (2013 till date)



PLAN OF ACTION


If elected President, the following are the immediate plans I intend to execute with the support and co-operation of Council and members of NSN:


Firstly, it is my intention to carry on with the good and valuable programmes/activities of the out-going Council and pursue the pending ones to logical conclusions thereby ensuring continuity.


Membership

NSN has grown tremendously in the past one decade and the membership strength soared with increase in the number of institutions offering Nutrition or Nutrition & Dietetics as the case may be.

However, the actual number of registered members and the spread across various institutions/establishments is not known. This does not speak well of a professional body as ours.

If elected President, it is my intention to carry out a comprehensive review of NSN membership with a view to determining and documenting the number of registered and financial members of the Society. This is important for proper planning and implementation of our programmes and activities.



Career progression for Nutritionists in Public Service

The issue of career progression for our colleagues in public service has been addressed by the past two administrations with considerable progress made. However, the issue is yet to be fully resolved.

The Council I hope to lead will attach topmost priority to resolving this issue so that our members can rise to the peak of their career like their counterparts in other professions. To achieve this, I plan to involve our members in relevant positions and trade unions who can bring in their wealth of experience and influence to ensure that a positive result is achieved within the shortest possible time.


National Council on Nutrition

The need for a National Council on Nutrition was initiated by Prof. Tola Atinmo as far back as 2002. The Council when established will coordinate nutrition activities and the practice of nutrition in the country.

Through his efforts and the various contributions of other elders of the Society, an approval was obtained for the establishment of the Council during the regime of President Olusegun Obasanjo. However, this council is yet to be inaugurated. The laudable efforts and contributions of these elders must not be in vain. The NSN Council under my leadership will work closely with these noble elders and relevant ministries to ensure that the National Council on Nutrition is inaugurated and functioning.




Celebration of Nutrition Week

We are all aware of the appalling nutrition indices that are being quoted for Nigeria. In order to address this ugly picture, the present NSN Council proposed the celebration of a Nutrition Week to provide a forum for advocacy on nutrition and to create awareness amongst the general populace on the importance and benefits of nutrition. The first Nutrition Week will soon be celebrated at the national level and I intend to expand the scope of the celebration by ensuring that the State Chapters of NSN carry out this activity in the coming years. This will provide an opportunity for our people in the rural areas to be educated on proper and adequate nutrition and the attendant benefits.


Finances

The major source of income for the running of the Secretariat of NSN and carrying out other activities is the annual dues paid by members. The collection of these dues has not been efficiently carried out for some time now. It is on record that many of our members fail to pay their annual dues for as many as 3 – 5 years at a stretch for one reason or the other.

If elected, I hope to work with the Financial Secretary to design a robust and more effective method for payment of annual dues so that members do not have to wait for our annual conferences before paying their dues.


Nigerian Journal of Nutritional Sciences

The Nigerian Journal of Nutritional Sciences (NJNS) is the official scientific publication of NSN and its overall success cannot be compromised. It is worthy of note that the journal has experienced a great transformation both in terms of quality and outlook in the past four years.

I plan to provide necessary support for the next Editor-In-Chief to sustain the current standard while seeking ways to further improve on the quality of the scientific content of NJNS. In addition, efforts will be made to improve on the visibility, acceptability and accessibility of the journal.


Revitalization of State Chapters and Formation

It is my candid opinion that well organized and functional NSN State Chapters are needed to build a bigger and stronger Society at the national level. It is my aspiration to revitalize the existing State Chapters and ensure that they function well while encouraging the formation of new chapters. State Chapters will be motivated to hold regular meetings and organize programmes for the development of nutritionists in their respective states.

Efforts will be made to establish regular and effective communication between the Leadership of the State Chapters and the NSN Executive Council.


Bridging the knowledge gap between the classroom and the field

It is on record that the Nutrition and Dietetics departments in the various institutions of higher learning have sound academic programmes. However, it is now known that many of our graduates find it rather difficult to secure nutrition jobs in international NGOs and development organizations because there exists a knowledge gap between what is taught in the classrooms and the practice of nutrition in the field/community.

The Council under my leadership will partner with relevant stakeholders to organize workshops to train nutritionists on the practice of nutrition in the community coupled with other emerging nutrition issues. This will provide an opportunity for continuous professional education and development of our members.


NSN Annual Conferences

The annual scientific conference of NSN is the most important gathering of the society that we have every year. This is so because it offers Nutritionists and allied professionals the opportunity to share their knowledge and experiences as practitioners, disseminate research findings, interact and learn from one another.

I plan to further improve on the general organization and scientific content of the annual conferences with the aim of boosting interactions and effective knowledge and experience sharing.


Mentorship

There is an urgent need to guide the young nutritionists in their career. I plan to encourage mentoring of these young nutritionists by the older and more experienced nutritionists.


Thank you and God bless.


Dr. Bartholomew I. C. Brai, FNSN

Vice-President (South)

Presidential Candidate, NSN

Long live NSN!

Long live Nigeria!

Proudly supported by olusola malomo, adeyemi, nutrition gladiators, dietetics student and all register member.....