Cebu City – To further strengthen the LGU nutrition program and secure its integration in the LGU Devolution Transition Plan, the National Nutrition Council Region VII partnered with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to conduct an online forum tagged LCE Forum on Nutrition Devolution. This regional event will be held on 15th of October 2021 at 1:30 P.M via zoom and will be streamed via Facebook live at National Nutrition Council Region VII official Facebook page or nncrvii.
The Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition (PPAN) 2017 2022 is an integral part of the Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022. It factors in and considers commitments to the global community as embodied in the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals , the 2025 Global Targets for Maternal, Infant and Young Child Nutrition, and the International Conference on Nutrition.
However, achieving the targets is a challenge as many gaps are still apparent in the nutrition program in the country and in the region. One of the major challenges that has been persistent through the years particularly in Central Visayas Is the functionality of Local Nutrition Committee (LNC). As of June 2021, DILG 7 reported that only 25.7% of LNCs are fully functional, 35.3% are substantially functional, 22.8% are partially functional and 7.4% are non-functional. This poor performance could be attributed to the lack of personnel to oversee and manage the nutrition programs. This is further aggravated by the demands imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic that has hit the country which demanded focus by local health workers leaving the nutrition program stagnant as evidenced by the high magnitude of malnutrition in 2020, specifically; 60,819 (10.1%) are chronically malnourished or stunted, 24,869 (4.2%) are underweight, 16,211 (2.7%) are overweight/obese and 14,382 (2.4%) are acutely malnourished wasted (OPT Plus, 2020).
With that in mind, the Central Visayas Regional Nutrition Committee seeks to secure important pieces of policy and budgetary support that will enable the LGUs for a better implementation of the PPAN and ensure that programs and activities will be implemented in the LGU level.
The Mandanas-Garcia Ruling could be a golden opportunity to help in filling the gaps and challenges of implementing the PPAN programs. This could address the issues encountered that hinders the implementation of these nutrition programs in the LGU level such as insufficient budget as well as lack of dedicated staff to oversee and manage the nutrition program. Those local governments who doesn’t have nutrition offices, full time Nutrition Action Officers (NAOs) as well as nutrition officers who will provide technical support and render direct nutrition services will now have enough resource to ensure that the necessary budgetary support for nutrition will be given.
This LCE Forum on Nutrition Devolution aims to solicit the support of local chief executives in the implementation of the PPAN. Specifically, the event hopes to resonate practices of Nutrition Champions in the LGUs of the region, encourage the inclusion of the nutrition priority programs in the devolution transition plan, ensure inclusion of the nutrition interventions in the 2022 AIP, and provide mechanism for LCEs to share their best practices in nutrition program management.
The National Nutrition Council Region VII invites all the Local Chief Executives as the Chairs of local nutrition committees to join and be with us, and together, through nutrition let’s ensure a healthier and secured life for our people. // Mary Bliss Joy P. Iguana PNFP Siquijor
