To address and prevent undernutrition and food insecurity, the National Nutrition Council (NNC) VIII expands its new area for the Local Nutrition Early Warning System (LNEWS) in Palompon, Leyte. This was initially opened with a consultative workshop participated in by the members of the Palompon Municipal Nutrition Committee on 8-9 August 2017 at the NGCP Hall, Palompon Municipal Hall in Palompon, Leyte.
Various regional agencies including the NNC Central Office were invited as resource persons during the consultative workshop to include: Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) Officer-in-Charge, Mr. Mario A. Peñaranda; Department of Health (DOH), Nutritionist Dietitian, Ms. Felecita R. Borata; Department of Agriculture (DA), Information Officer III, Ms. Ma. Christina E. Colasito, Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), OIC-Provincial Coconut Development Manager,Mr. Jaime M. Nuñez; Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), Training Specialist, Ms. Leodelyn Conejos; Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Statistical Analyst, Mr. Jonas A. Repulda; and NNC Nutrition Officer II, Ms. Alona E. Teo as the main facilitator during the workshop.
Regional Nutrition Program Coordinator (RNPC) Dr. Catalino P. Dotollo, Jr., emphasized that LNEWS-FNS is a planning tool in preventing further deterioration of the nutrition situation by understanding the determinants of food insecurity in the area which can provide useful insights and guide for policy and food security initiatives in the municipality.
The consultative-workshop for the establishment of LNEWS in Palompon, Leyte has identified five (5) sentinel barangays for monitoring of indicators, these are: (1) Mazawalo, (2) San Isidro, (3) San Miguel, (4) Buenavista, and (5) Lat-osan. The areas were selected according to: barangays with no less than 188 households, barangays with no less than 183 preschool children 0-71 months old, proportion of malnourished children 0-71 months old, good cross-section of livelihoods in the municipality (e.g., coastal, lowland, upland, etc.), reasonably accessible to allow for periodic monitoring by local government unit (LGU) and participation rate of the communities to development activities.
Palompon, Leyte is the third municipality with Gandara in Samar and Hilongos in Leyte as identified by NNC in Eastern Visayas as expansion areas. Based on the 2016 Operation Timbang (OPT) Plus, the municipality has a prevalence of underweight and severely underweight preschool children of 16.71%, one of the highest in Eastern Visayas. The municipality has fifty (50) barangays, with twenty-six (26) being located in the coastline area bordering Camotes Sea which is also prone to natural calamities and other disasters affecting food and nutrition security. These were some of the factors for placing the municipality a viable expansion area for the establishment of LNEWS in the region. –Niño Archie S. Labordo, NNC VIII
