Lawmaker wants probe on PHL’s ‘nutrition security’

As the country continues to face persistent problems of malnutrition and hunger, Sen. Juan Edgardo M. Angara has filed a resolution to look into the unchanging patterns of malnutrition in the country and find ways to improve the nutritional well-being of Filipinos.

Angara cited the Food and Nutrition Research Institute’s (FNRI) 2013 National Nutrition Survey, which showed that 19.9 percent of children under the age of 5 are underweight, 30.3 percent are stunted and 7.9 percent are wasted.

For children aged 5 to 10, the 2013 FNRI survey showed that 29.1 percent are underweight, 29.9 percent are stunted and 8.6 percent are wasted.

To address the prevalence of undernourished children in the country, Angara, during his days in Congress, authored the Early Years Act of 2013, or the Republic Act 10410, which ensures that adequate health and nutrition programs are accessible to young children and their parents, from the prenatal period to the early childhood years.

Angara has also been pushing for the passage of the Child Nutrition bill, which seeks to institutionalize a school feeding and child nutrition program throughout the public-elementary school network in the country.

Under Senate Bill (SB) 202, the National Nutrition Council, the Department of Health, and the Department of Education (DepEd) are mandated to initiate, maintain and expand a system of distribution of milk, fortified snack foods and vitamin supplements to public-elementary school entrants.

“The most effective means to combat child hunger and malnutrition is through the public-school network, where we could target children who belong to poorer families,” Angara said in a statement.

Currently, feeding programs are being implemented only in selected schools by the DepEd and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Moreover, the DSWD’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program provides cash grants to families that send their children to school and health checkups.

“It has long been recognized that the achievement of food and nutrition security requires a multisectoral approach. Presently, there are more than 20 government agencies, with no single lead agency, which ensure that nutritious food is accessible to the Filipino people,” the senator said, calling on the government authorities and other stakeholders to take a more concerted effort in addressing food insecurity and eradicating hunger in the country.

“Given all the government-led initiatives and efforts to address food insecurity, there is a need to integrate these programs and ensure that they are maintained across time,” added Angara, a coauthor of SB 2137, or the Right to Adequate Food Framework bill filed by Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago.

The proposed measure provides for a framework law that will help strengthen food programs and coordinate the government’s action to achieve zero hunger in 10 years.

Angara has also urged the government to ensure food and nutrition security given the higher risk of hunger and malnutrition due to natural disasters.

“The Philippines is vulnerable to a myriad of natural hazards, such as typhoons, flooding, landslides, earthquakes and volcanic activities, which plunge Filipino families into poverty, hunger and malnutrition,” he said.

“As we celebrate the National Nutrition Month, I call on the appropriate government authorities to take into consideration the effects of climate change, and to ensure food and nutrition security among Filipinos amid natural and man-made hazards and conflicts,” Angara added. –Recto Mercene, Businesmirror