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The Philippines is celebrating the 28th National Children’s Month with the theme, “Sama-samang Itaguyod ang Karapatan ng Bawat Bata sa Panahon ng Pandemya!” this month. By virtue of Republic Act 10661, the National Children’s Month (NCM) in the country commemorates the adoption of the UN CRC on 20 November 1989 and is annually celebrated every November. It seeks to instill its significance in the Filipino consciousness. This November 2020 marks the 28th anniversary of the NCM.
Read more: Uphold Children’s Rights in this Time of Pandemic
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This year’s World Toilet Day celebration is anchored with the theme "Toilets for Every Juan: BIDA ang pamilyang gumagamit ng Kubeta". The humble ‘kubeta’ saves lives but around 50.3 million Filipinos, roughly around 10 million families do not have access to safely managed sanitation services and of these some 24 million use limited/unimproved toilets or none at all based on the 2019 Annual Poverty Indicators Survey (APIS). Not having a toilet is one of the world’s greatest challenges to human health. We need to take action urgently if we’re to meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6: Water and sanitation for all by 2030.
Globally, diarrhea caused by dirty water and poor toilets kills a child under five every two minutes. Enabling families on a low income to gain access to affordable homes with toilets and running water would cut the number of diarrheal deaths by a third. One in ten people have no choice but to defecate in the open which spreads diseases like typhoid, cholera, hepatitis, polio and trachoma. Open defecation creates a vicious cycle of disease and poverty. Moreover, loss of human productivity due to illnesses caused by lack of toilets and sanitation is estimated to cost many countries up to 5% of GDP. According to the World Health Organization, investments on toilets and sanitation has increased productivity and lower health care costs.
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Universal Children’s Day is celebrated annually on 20th November. The goal of Universal Children’s day is to improve child welfare worldwide, promote and celebrate children’s rights and promote togetherness and awareness amongst all children. Initially launched in 1954, Universal Children’s day has seen some milestone events in the field of child welfare. Marking the anniversary of the dates when the UN General assembly adopted both the declaration and convention of children’s rights. The convention sets out a number of children’s rights such as the rights to be protected from violence and discrimination and the rights to life, health and education. Yet, fulfilling the right to health and nutrition of Filipino children remains a challenge that needs to be addressed.
Read more: Universal Children’s Day Calls for Renewed Commitment
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TACLOBAN CITY – On Friday, the Municipal Core Team for the Local Nutrition in Early Warning System (LNEWS) in the Municipality of Libagon expressed readiness to start the monitoring activities after the team successfully completed the two-day training workshop on Food and Nutrition Security - Early Warning System on November 19-20, 2020 at LAMP Coop Function Hall, Libagon, Southern Leyte.
The FNS-EWS is a form of monitoring and analysis of relevant information that may foretell a possible crisis such as food shortage or health problem. The tool will help strengthen the local government units (LGUs) capacity for data collection, analysis and interpretation, and the use of data for nutrition program planning and decision-making.
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The National Nutrition Council (NNC) Region VIII kick-starts the Nutrition in Emergencies and Information Management (NIE-IM) Blended Learning Course last November 13, 2020 through a live opening program via Google Meet. The said program was attended by 10 local government units, (LGU) coming from (1) Biliran Province, (2) Samar Province, (3) Borongan City, Eastern Samar (4) Saint Bernard, Southern Leyte (5) San Juan, Southern Leyte (6) Daram, Samar (7) Marabut, Samar (8) Paranas, Samar (9) Tagapul-an, Samar, and (10) Jipapad, Eastern Samar, including participants from the Department of Health-Health Emergency Management Bureau (DOH-HEMS) and Plan International.
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Across the Philippines and around the world, the number and scale of disasters and emergencies will continue to rise – and women and children are the most affected population. Climate change, environmental degradation, and natural hazards such as earthquakes, floods and drought are wreaking havoc in vulnerable communities. The recent devastation brought by Typhoons Rolly and Ulysses in Northern and Southern Luzon left many homeless without adequate food to eat. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic further threatens the health and nutrition of women and children in settings that are already made fragile by disasters.
Disasters and emergency situations are often characterized by limited access to adequate safe food and water, as well as disruptions in health and nutrition services and constraints to protecting, promoting and supporting optimal infant and young child feeding. Women and children women are extremely vulnerable in emergencies and their nutritional status must be protected to prevent undernutrition and guarantee survival.
In order to do this, we need to support mothers to safely and adequately feed their babies during emergencies such as providing therapeutic feeding to children experiencing acute malnutrition to save their lives and deliver essential micronutrients to prevent and treat deficiencies. These are critical interventions to support infant and young child survival. There should also be close coordination with water and sanitation and health care programs which also help safeguard children’s nutritional status.
Read more: Saving Lives of Women and Children through Nutrition in Emergencies
