The Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition (PPAN) 2017-2022 is the country’s blueprint to address the immediate, underlying, and basic causes of malnutrition. It consists of nutrition-specific programs, nutrition-sensitive programs, and enabling programs.

In its Technical Guidance Brief for Effective At-Scale Nutrition Social and Behavior Change Communication, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) acknowledges that all the immediate and underlying causes of malnutrition are behavioral– influenced by the behaviors of individuals and their household members. However, the actions of a variety of other actors have an impact on nutrition. These actors range from healthcare providers and schoolteachers to farmers and other agricultural agents, religious and community leaders to private sector companies and policymakers, all of whom have direct or indirect impact on care and feeding practices, household food security, the household environment, and healthcare services.

Enhancing the nutrition behavior of women, caregivers, family and community members, and those who influence them is the goal of the multi-media nutrition campaign, Nutrition Promotion Program for Behavior Change.

The program includes a set of interventions that systematically combines elements of interpersonal communication, social change and community mobilization activities, mass media, and advocacy to support individuals, families, communities and institutions.

National Government Agencies, Local Government Units (LGU), non-government organizations, academe, and workplaces conduct various activities to adopt positive practices that will impact nutrition. Such activities are webinars/fora, trainings, nutrition counseling/class, developing and printing of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials such as Pinggang Pinoy and 10 Kumainments, multimedia campaign in print, television, social media and radio.

The National Nutrition Council established the Nutriskwela Community Radio Network Program as a strategy to address hunger and malnutrition problem by promoting good nutrition in priority development areas using radio as channel of communication. As of this year, there are 44 Nutriskwela community radio stations in various parts of the country that broadcast nutrition, health, and other developmental programs that are beyond the scope of commercial radio broadcast.

Also, one of the nutrition promotion activities is the Nutrition Month, a nationwide celebration every July which focuses on spreading awareness on timely nutrition concerns.

To ensure that the school children are properly guided about nutrition, the Department of Education (DepEd) included nutrition education in the K-to-12 curriculum especially in Health and Technology and Livelihood Education (T.L.E.) subjects, issuance of nutrition-related policies/guidelines, and capacity building activities for DepEd personnel and public schools.

Even during the onset of pandemic, promotion of proper nutrition continued, from face-to-face activities to utilizing online platforms to sustain the efforts in disseminating correct and up-to-date nutrition messages for informed and healthier. Through relevant nutrition messages, we spark positive behavior change, and ultimately, produce better nutrition outcomes. Sa PPAN, panalo ang bayan! (NO I Vazamija Therese A. Villasi, RND)

References:

Radyo mo sa Nutrisyon. (1 June 2019). Episode 38 “Nutri-Tips for School Children”. Retrieved 26 April 2022 from https://www.facebook.com/radyomosanutrisyon/posts/2466967939979943

United States Agency for International Development (2014). Effective At-Scale Nutrition Social and Behavior Change Communication. Accessed 4 April 2022. Retrieved from https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1864/at-scale-nutritionSBCC-technical-guidance-brief-edit-508.pdf

United States Agency for International Development. (n.d.). Moving Nutrition Social and Behavior Change Forward. Spring Nutrition. Retrieved April 26, 2022, from https://www.spring-nutrition.org/publications/briefs/moving-nutrition-social-and-behavior-change-forward