Resources from the project
In 2024, the rate of stunted children in mountainous communes such as Nam Tra My, Dong Giang, Nam Giang, Tra Tap, Tra Tan... will be about 20.2%. This is a high rate compared to the national average and communes in the plains.
Before merging the province, Quang Nam set a target of reducing the rate of stunting malnutrition by 2% and the rate of wasting malnutrition by 1% in children under 5 years old in poor districts.
However, the health sector's report for the first 6 months of the year shows that the current goals of reducing the rate of stunting in children under 5 years old and the rate of stunting in underweight children have not been achieved.
A representative of Nam Tra My Medical Center said that currently, primary health care in the highlands still has many limitations, from equipment, medicine to human resources. This makes it difficult to implement nutrition activities.
Specifically, staff receive little training and are often rotated, not to mention that the village medical team currently has to take on many jobs.
A health worker in Tra Tap commune said that children in the highlands are still not guaranteed daily nutrition due to difficult economic conditions. Their daily meals are mainly rice, wild vegetables and very little meat and fish. Adding nutritious foods to their daily meals is a big challenge.
Previously, activities to improve child nutrition were mainly implemented from the National Target Program for Sustainable Poverty Reduction. A representative of the Department of Health said that the sector sent staff to monitor nutrition improvement activities in localities; and provided training to improve the capacity of commune health workers in the two localities of Nam Tra My and Bac Tra My.
Project 7 of the National Target Program for Socio-Economic Development of Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Areas with the content of health care, improving the physical condition and stature of ethnic minorities; preventing child malnutrition. This is a condition for mountainous communes to have resources to improve the malnutrition situation in children.
Project 7 focuses on implementing the “First 1,000 Days of Life” model for young children and pregnant mothers in mountainous areas; implementing a system of weighing, screening, and providing micronutrients for children from 6 months to 59 months old. The goal is to reduce the stunting rate by 2% from 20.2% in 2024 to 20%, while increasing the number of children receiving complementary foods by 7-10% and ensuring that 80% of poor households have micronutrients when needed.
Nutrition for mothers and children
In March 2025, Quang Nam became the 62nd province in the country to implement the Maternal and Child Nutrition Program. This is a national initiative implemented since 2020 by the Department of Maternal and Child Health - Ministry of Health, in coordination with Ajinomoto Vietnam and the National Institute of Nutrition.
The program aims to provide comprehensive nutritional care for pregnant and lactating mothers and children under 5 years old, contributing to improving the stature and health of Vietnamese people. This is also an activity within the “National Nutrition Strategy for the period 2021-2030 and vision to 2045”.
The software “Building a balanced nutritional menu for pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers and children from 7 months to 60 months old” was deployed on this occasion. The software provides a diverse menu bank of more than 2,000 dishes according to the standards of the Institute of Nutrition. This is also considered a tool for monitoring weight - height, comprehensive assessment of nutrition and exercise. The software also supports personalizing the menu to suit the development stage, taste and shopping conditions of each family.
According to information from the Da Nang Department of Health, in the period 2014 - 2024, Da Nang has reduced the rate of malnutrition in children under 5 years old from 14% in 2014 to 12.3% in 2024. This reflects efforts in preventing malnutrition and improving nutrition for children.
It is known that currently, mountainous communes are implementing a program to redistribute multi-micronutrient tablets for pregnant women under the direction of the Institute of Nutrition. The optimization of micronutrient levels for children from 6 months to 59 months, spreading according to the objectives of Project 7, needs to be continued in the new administrative boundaries. The system of periodic monitoring, updated quarterly to adjust policies flexibly is also a concern of mountainous localities to improve the physical condition and improve the malnutrition situation of mountainous children.
Source: https://baodanang.vn/no-luc-giam-suy-dinh-duong-o-tre-em-mien-nui-3265201.html
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