Speed ​​up the reduction of child stunting malnutrition

On the morning of April 15, the Department of Maternal and Child Health – Ministry of Health cooperated with Vietnam Network of Social Organizations for Nutrition (SUN CSA) to organize a workshop to promote the implementation of the Program ‘Nutrition care The first 1,000 days of life are aimed at preventing maternal and child malnutrition, contributing to improving the stature and physical strength of the Vietnamese people. ‘

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On the morning of April 15, the Department of Maternal and Child Health – Ministry of Health in collaboration with Vietnam Network of Social Organizations for Nutrition (SUN CSA) organized a workshop to promote the implementation of the Program “Nutrition care. The first 1,000 days of life are aimed at preventing maternal and child malnutrition, contributing to improving the stature and physical strength of Vietnamese people “.

The workshop aimed to guide nine provinces in the North to develop program implementation plans, and at the same time discussed to promote the development of detailed work plans and implementation of the program in the localities.

Dr. Nguyen Duc Vinh, Director of the Department of Maternal and Child Health, Ministry of Health, said that at present, many localities do not have plans to implement the program, so the provinces need to quickly implement the plan to have the best nutritional care for mothers and children, speed up the reduction of stunting malnutrition in children.

Currently, breastfeeding counseling is still limited. The incidence of anemia in pregnant women is high. Undernourished pregnant women still exist in many localities, but in big cities, pregnant women are gaining too much weight. There is still a gap in the quality of meals for children aged 6-24 months between geographical regions, economic and occupational conditions of mothers and ethnic groups.

Dr. Nguyen Duc Vinh, Director General of Maternal and Child Health Department, Ministry of Health, spoke at the workshop.

At the workshop, representatives of the units / localities discussed to develop a plan as well as organize the implementation of the first 1,000 days of nutritional care program in which identifying and analyzing priority issues. local, target development, selection of solutions, planning activities and program evaluation indicators.

After the seminar, localities will actively review and develop plans to submit to local authorities for approval and implement implementation to accelerate the reduction of stunting malnutrition in the country in general. As well as in mountainous areas, ethnic minorities in particular contribute to improving the physical stature of Vietnamese people, successfully implementing the goal of improving nutritional status of the Sixth Conference of the Central Committee. Program XII and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.

On December 5, 2019, the Prime Minister issued Decision No. 1896 / QD-TTg approving the program “Nutrition care for the first 1,000 days of life to prevent maternal and child malnutrition, and improve the Vietnamese stature ”.

The program sets specific goals, to 2025, the rate of stunting in children under 5 years old is less than 20%; The rate of underweight malnutrition among children under 5 years old is less than 11%, particularly in ethnic minority and mountainous areas less than 15%; the proportion of children with a low birth weight (less than 2,500 grams) was less than 8%; the rate of anemia among pregnant women is below 23%, particularly in mountainous areas below 25.5%; 80% of mothers practiced early breastfeeding and 25% of mothers exclusively breastfed their babies in the first 6 months; 60% of mothers continued to breastfeed until their babies were 24 months old or longer; 70% of mothers gave children from 6-24 months of age correctly.

By 2030, the rate of stunting in children under 5 years old is less than 19%; the underweight malnutrition rate in children under 5 years old is less than 10.5%; the proportion of children with a low birth weight (less than 2,500 grams) was less than 7%; the rate of anemia among pregnant women drops below 20%, particularly in mountainous areas below 23.5%; 85% of mothers practiced early breastfeeding and 30% of mothers exclusively breastfed their babies in the first 6 months; 70% of mothers continued to breastfeed until their babies were 24 months old or longer; 80% of mothers give children from 6-24 months of age correctly.