title: A decade of nutrition research in Africa: assessment of the evidence base and academic collaboration.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Malnutrition in Africa has not improved compared with other regions in the world. Investment in the build-up of a strong African research workforce is essential to provide contextual solutions to the nutritional problems of Africa. To orientate this process, we reviewed nutrition research carried out in Africa and published during the last decade.
  
  
  METHODS
  We assessed nutrition research from Africa published between 2000 and 2010 from MEDLINE and EMBASE and analysed the study design and type of intervention for studies indexed with major MeSH terms for vitamin A deficiency, protein-energy malnutrition, obesity, breast-feeding, nutritional status and food security. Affiliations of first authors were visualised as a network and power of affiliations was assessed using centrality metrics.
  
  
  METHODS
  Africa.
  
  
  METHODS
  Africans, all age groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Most research on the topics was conducted in Southern (36%) and Western Africa (34%). The intervention studies (9%; n 95) mainly tested technological and curative approaches to the nutritional problems. Only for papers on protein-energy malnutrition and obesity did lead authorship from Africa exceed that from non-African affiliations. The 10% most powerfully connected affiliations were situated mainly outside Africa for publications on vitamin A deficiency, breast-feeding, nutritional status and food security.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The development of the evidence base for nutrition research in Africa is focused on treatment and the potential for cross-African networks to publish nutrition research from Africa remains grossly underutilised. Efforts to build capacity for effective nutrition action in Africa will require forging a true academic partnership between African and non-African research institutions.
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Food Safety and Food Quality,Ghent University,Ghent,Belgium.
authors.forename: Carl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lachat
authors.affiliation: 2Unit of Nutrition and Child Health,Institute for Tropical Medicine,Nationalestraat 155,2000 Antwerp,Belgium.
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Roberfroid
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Food Safety and Food Quality,Ghent University,Ghent,Belgium.
authors.forename: Lien
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Van den Broeck
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Food Safety and Food Quality,Ghent University,Ghent,Belgium.
authors.forename: Natalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Van den Briel
authors.affiliation: 3Department of Food Science and Nutrition,University of Abomey-Calavi,Cotonou,Benin.
authors.forename: Eunice
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Nago
authors.affiliation: 4Africa Unit for Transdisciplinary Health Research,North-West University,Potchefstroom,South Africa.
authors.forename: Annamarie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kruger
authors.affiliation: 5ScHARR - Public Health Section,University of Sheffield,Sheffield,UK.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Holdsworth
authors.affiliation: 6School of Public Health,Makerere University,Kampala,Uganda.
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Garimoi Orach
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Food Safety and Food Quality,Ghent University,Ghent,Belgium.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kolsteren
mesh_terms: D000047:Academies and Institutes; D000349:Africa; D035843:Biomedical Research; D057191:Capacity Building; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007391:International Cooperation; D044342:Malnutrition / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000628:therapy; D052756:Nutritional Sciences; D000078329:Workforce
keywords: Africa; Malnutrition; Research