Initiative launched to ensure enough nutrition for Vietnamese children
A conference to respond to the National Breastfeeding Week and launch the "ENOUGH" Nutrition Initiative took place on August 5 in Hanoi.
The event was jointly organised by the National Institute of Nutrition under the Ministry of Health, and the World Vision International in Vietnam, in response to the "World Breastfeeding Week" held annually from August 1-7.
Speaking at the conference, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Tri Thuc urged sectors, agencies, and organisations nationwide to pay attention to and effectively invest resources in implementing essential nutrition actions, particularly for children in mountainous and ethnic minority areas.
The "ENOUGH" Nutrition Initiative will contribute significantly to building a world where every child has access to adequate nutritious food to develop healthily, reduce the burden of disease, and enhance the physical stature and intellectual capacity of the Vietnamese people, said Thuc.
Child health and nutrition have always been a priority in the Vietnamese government’s action programmes. As a result, Vietnam has achieved significant progress in reducing the rate of child malnutrition over the years, from 29.3% in 2010 to 19.6% in 2020 in terms of stunting. However, Vietnam still faces a "double burden" of child nutrition: high rates of stunting among children in mountainous and ethnic minority regions (with the Central Highlands and northern mountainous regions at 29.8% and 27.1%, respectively), increasing overweight and obesity rates among children under 5 in urban and rural areas, and deficiencies in micronutrients among children in various regions.
The initiative’s activities include increasing and enhancing the supply of nutritious and healthy food for children through livelihood improvement activities; bettering nutritional care practices for caregivers through community social communication and counseling activities; organising forums to share best practices and lessons related to nutrition; and mobilising the participation and contribution of stakeholders to address the initiative’s priority areas.
These activities will be integrated into 25 regional programmes across various provinces and cities nationwide, including Dien Bien, Hai Phong, Thanh Hoa, Quang Tri, Da Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Dak Nong, and Ho Chi Minh City.
