Cebu City – Uncertain tenures, low honoraria and vague function delineation between barangay nutrition scholars, health workers and midwives beleaguer barangay nutrition scholars. Local government units may have to rationalize governance styles to include the nutrition agenda.
Concerns about low honorarium and politicized treatment of barangay nutrition scholars were raised during a meeting among presidents barangay nutrition workers of Cebu Province held last February 26. Another meeting among Presidents of nutrition scholars of the region was held on February 27.
In both meetings, barangay nutrition scholars deplored that not all local government units are giving honorarium to barangay nutrition scholars while other barangay nutrition workers were reportedly retrenched and replaced by people “close” to the administration in the aftermath of the barangay elections in October last year.
Under PD 1569, all barangays in the country are mandated to have one barangay nutrition worker or scholar per barangay to strengthen the nutrition program in the barangay. The worker is responsible for delivering barangay nutrition services and other related activities including planning, coordinating, advocacy and promotion, implementation, monitoring and evaluation and resource mobilization and generation.
Barangay nutrition scholars based in the city are receiving an honoraria on a counterpart arrangement with the local government units. But nutrition scholars deplored that some nutrition workers in the area carry on their tasks from personal, out-of-pocket expense.
Of similar concern was the fast turn-over and replacement of barangay nutrition workers in the aftermath of the October 2013 barangay elections. Nutrition workers said many of the well trained and efficient workers were replaced with people close to the new administration who need to be trained again. Present nutrition scholars asked that their terms be not coterminous with barangay politics as this affected services.
The lack of clear cut functions between the nutrition scholars, midwives and health workers has also cause rifts in the work between the nutrition scholars and other health workers in the barangay.
To date, local government units may have to review their governance agenda to include nutrition and the allocation of honorarium for barangay nutrition workers.
