“Kalusugan at Nutrisyon ng Mag-Nanay Act”: Ensures The Future of Filipino Children
One landmark legislation approved, and the future of our children are set for the better. All that is needed is the cooperation of all the members of the community for it to be a success.
Signed on 29 November 2018 by President Rodrigo R. Duterte, RA 11148 otherwise known as “Kalusugan at Nutrisyon ng Mag-Nanay Act” emphasizes the right to prioritize nutrition for every female adolescent, pregnant and lactating women, infants and young children in collaboration with participating government and non-government agencies to eradicate hunger and reduce and/or eliminate all forms of malnutrition in the country.
To ensure the right start of life, the first 1000 days ni baby (pregnancy – 270 + 1st year of life – 365 + 2nd year of life – 365=1000 days) should be well cared of physically, psychologically and emotionally. The program from the word itself speaks of the importance of proper nutrition of the baby from conception up to the child’s second birthday, which has been identified by various researches as one of the most vulnerable and critical stage of life.
In Central Visayas, the National Nutrition Council Region VII has been implementing said program since 2016, but with a limited coverage. To date, the program covers priority municipalities in Cebu Province particularly Dalaguete, Santa Fe and Tuburan. The three municipalities were chosen for the program implementation being considered as Accelerated and Sustainable Anti-Poverty Program (ASAPP) areas. The said municipalities were among the areas with highest poverty prevalence which would eventually result to a domino effect of increasing malnutrition if not acted upon.
Data from the 2015 National Nutrition Survey has shown that Central Visayas has a high prevalence of stunting and wasting among children below five years old. To strengthen the continuity of scaling up nutrition programs in the first 1000 days of a child’s life, a collaboration of different government and non-government agencies in the implementation of multi-sectoral strategies and approaches of health, nutrition, psychosocial services and food security would provide great impact to the growth and development of a child.
The Department of Health in coordination with National Nutrition Council, Department of Agriculture, local government units and other national government agencies are the ones responsible for the program implementation of the said Act. Section 7 of RA 11148 states that “the NNC and other concerned NGAs shall provide appropriate technical assistance to respective LGU counterparts in the development, formulation and implementation of this Act.”
Dr. Parolita A. Mission, NNC 7 Nutrition Program Coordinator said that the recent signing of the law would create a bigger impact on early child care program implementation among the local government units as it supports and intervenes directly to the pregnant and lactating mothers as well as the child. “A more focused implementation of health, nutrition, agriculture and psychosocial will be done in the grass root level with the help of the trained health and nutrition workers”, Dr. Mission added.
The law also encourages the LGUs to incorporate in their local nutrition action plans and investment plans for health the integration of maternal, neonatal, child health and nutrition programs. Thus, the signed law marks the beginning of a well-supported nutrition program wherein the government and the community work together as a team and recognize the importance of life right from where it started. (STL)
