Spanish-funded project helps deal with malnutrition
The food security component of the Spanish Government-funded integrated nutrition and food security project has produced positive results in dealing with malnutrition in under-5 children and ensuring food security.
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The information was released at a conference to conclude the first component of the integrated nutrition and food security project targeting children and vulnerable groups in the central province of Ninh Thuan on June 13.
The project also helped increase the awareness of farmers and community of food security and integrated nutrition and food security changes.
Through the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Government of Spain has provided US$1.5 million for the project, which has been carried out in Ninh Thuan province and the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai.
The project targets the most disadvantaged ethnic minorities, those living in poverty, and seeks to reduce inequity gaps with a goal of improving the nutritional status of more than 36 million women of reproductive age and 7.1 million boys and girls under five in Vietnam.
The ratio of acute malnutrition (wasting) among under-5 children decreased slightly to 14.1% in 2015 from 14.5% in 2014, while the rate of chronic malnutrition (stunting) dropped 0.3% to 24.6% in 2015, according to a reported released by the National Institution of Nutrition in July 2016.
