On January 28, 2022, the National Nutrition Council Region IX (NNC 9) successfully conducted the Region IX Coaching, Assisting, and Reaching Advocates Virtually to Advance in Nutrition (R9 CARAVAN) for Local Nutrition Workers (LNWs) – Session 3. This activity was held via Google meet from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. to further enhance their capacities in doing OPT+. This initiative started last September 4, 2021, followed by a follow-though activity on October 7, 2021. It was participated by a total of five hundred ninety-one (591) Zamboanga Peninsula Nutrition Action Officers (NAOs), Local Nutrition Program Coordinators (LNPCs), Barangay Nutrition Scholars (BNSs), other local nutrition program implementers, and NNC 9 staff.

The 1st quarter of the year has been the period to conduct Operation Timbang Plus (OPT +). This has been done annually to monitor the 0-59 month’s old children through anthropometric measurement to assess the improvement or deterioration of their nutritional status. Likewise, this will also serve as the baseline for the yearly implementation of nutrition inventions to ensure food and nutrition security in the locality. As a follow-through activity, NNC 9 conducted the third session of R9 CARAVAN with the local nutrition program implementers to continue to provide technical assistance to these nutrition frontlines while adapting to the new normal in this time of COVID-19 pandemic and to refresh them on the salient features in doing OPT+. Moreover, this aims to ensure that accurate anthropometric measurement will be obtained from the targeted 0-59 months old children as well as ensuring the timely submission of OPT Plus reports to the region.

The NAOs, LNPCs and BNSs are the NNC’s extended working arms and channels for the dissemination and operationalization of the national nutrition policies, strategies, and programs at the local level that provide leverage in addressing the malnutrition problem in the country, hence the need to update and reorient them on the current nutrition policies and program directions to effectively implement the local nutrition plan must be done on a regular basis. With this and as a means to overcome the current challenges, the NNC 9, through the leadership of RNPC Nimfa Ekong, continues to capacitate the local nutrition program implementers via R9 CARAVAN to reinforce them on their roles and functions towards improving the nutrition situation in Zamboanga Peninsula.

-PNFP Rowence F. Zorilla