DOH Teams Up With WHO And UNICEF To Address Malnutrition In The Philippines

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Department of Health (DOH), through the National Nutrition Council (NNC), in collaboration with World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nation Children’s Fund (UNICEF) convenes for the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Philippine Gathering (#SUNMOVEMENTPH) to bring key players from the government agencies, developmental partners, civil society groups, business sector and the academe to identify actions in addressing malnutrition.

The SUN movement calls on member countries, including the Philippines which is the 51st country to be accepted, to scale up nutrition actions including promotion of breastfeeding and appropriate complementary feeding, management of acute malnutrition, and nutrition-sensitive interventions in agriculture, education and social welfare among others.

Globally, close to half of deaths in children under 5 years old can be directly or indirectly linked to malnutrition. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 17 million children under age five in the world are severely malnourished and have at least 9x increased risk for death.

Malnutrition remains a significant public health concern in the Philippines with a staggering 3.4 million children who are stunted (short for their age) and more than 300,000 children under 5 years who are wasted (underweight for their age). This continues to be a serious child health problem, with the Philippines being highly disaster-prone. The risk of malnutrition increases in the aftermath of emergencies.

Philippines Status in Nutrition Revealed in Global Report, Stakeholders Convened to Rev Up Efforts

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It was both good and bad news for the Philippines as the status of addressing malnutrition in the world was reported in a forum held on 25-26 January 2016 convened by the National Nutrition Council (NNC), Department of Health and UNICEF Philippines. 

The forum launched the “2015 Global Nutrition Report: Actions and Accountability to Advance Nutrition and Sustainable Development” which was prepared by the Independent Expert Group of international experts and published by the International Food Policy Research Institute based in Washington, D. C..

Dr. Lawrence Haddad, noted international expert in nutrition and lead author of the 2015 Global Nutrition Report, presented the highlights of the report that reviewed the status of 193 countries. In the report, the Philippines score was considered “on course” in meeting targets to reduce child stunting and overweight. On the other hand, the Philippines is “off course” for child wasting and anemia.

Like many countries, the Philippines has seen slow reductions in malnutrition. Dr. Haddad went on to say that if the Philippines and other countries want to achieve their commitment to attain the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 as well as the World Health Assembly 2025 Global Targets, countries have to end all forms of malnutrition by scaling up proven nutrition interventions and by committing and investing in nutrition as well as holding nutrition stakeholders accountable. Haddad further stressed that “Ending malnutrition will drive sustainable development forward.”

Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA Philippines 2016 by Alaska Sets New Tip-Off Attendance Record for Coaches and Youth

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The Jr. NBA/ Jr. WNBA Philippines 2016 presented by Alaska hosted 281 coaches from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao during the coaches clinic while the open clinics trained 1,068 youth from ages 5-16, setting a new attendance record for the Jr. NBA tip-off event at Don Bosco Technical Institute, Makati.

NBA Philippines Managing Director Carlo Singson welcomed participants to the ninth consecutive staging of the Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA Philippines program, which launched its inaugural event in the same venue nine years ago. Harry the Atlanta Hawks mascot and assistant Leighton together with Alaska Aces mascot E-Cow entertained children, parents and coaches with a dance showdown featuring kids from the audience.

Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA Philippines 2016 presented by Alaska, running from January 23 to April 24, will teach basketball fundamentals and impart its core values of Sportsmanship, Teamwork, a positive Attitude and Respect at the grassroots level to improve the youth basketball experience for players, coaches and parents. The Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA program is free and open to boys and girls between the ages of 10-14.

Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA Philippines is comprised of four stages: skills clinics in schools and communities, Regional Selection Camps, a National Training Camp and an NBA experience trip. The skills clinics will be held nationwide from January through April with stops in Bukidnon, Butuan, Cagayan de Oro, Dagupan, Davao, Iloilo, Metro Manila and Puerto Princesa, and first-time locations in Batangas, Catanduanes and Cavite. Select players from these clinics will have the opportunity to showcase their skills in tryouts during the Regional Selection Camps, which will be held in Baguio (Feb. 20-21), Davao (Feb. 27-28), Cebu (March 5-6) and Metro Manila (April 9-10). The top 50 boys and 24 girls from the Regional Selection Camps will advance to the National Training Camp in Manila April 22-24.