Taguig cuts down malnutrition rate to 1 percent

MANILA, Philippines - The malnutrition rate in Taguig City for this year has been cut to just one percent, the city government reported Thursday.

For recording only a malnutrition rate of 0.88 for 2014 compared to 1.38 percent last year, the National Nutrition Council-National Capital Region (NNC-NCR) awarded Taguig the Green Banner during the 2014 Regional Nutrition Awarding Ceremony held last August 29.

The Green Banner award is the highest honor conferred to a local government unit for its exemplary implementation and management of nutrition programs.

Taguig Mayor Lani Cayetano lauded the City Nutrition Office and challenged them to implement more innovative projects to fight malnutrition in Taguig.

“This award is not only a testament to our commitment to deliver the best nutrition and health services to our people, but it also serves as motivation for us to make a difference in our implementation of our nutrition action plans that will create a bigger impact on the improvement of the well-being of the families in the city,” she said.

Julie Bernabe, head of the Taguig City Nutrition Office, said the decline in the malnutrition rate has been attributed to the different programs implemented to reach the goal of a zero malnutrition rate in the city.

Among them is the implementation of a supplementary feeding that includes de-worming for children, the distribution of micronutrient supplements such as vitamin A and iron syrup and a highly successful information and education campaign on healthy food production and preparation for parents.

Aside from the Green Banner Award, Taguig is also a recipient of a couple of special awards such as Best in Resource Generation and Mobilization for Nutrition Programs and Most Innovative in Nutrition Program Implementation.

Taguig has been lauded for its pioneering health programs like the 24/7 Super Health Center, Door-to-Door delivery of maintenance medicines and Call a Doctor project.