TACLOBAN CITY – The mayor of Arteche, Eastern Samar expressed his gratitude for the opportunity given by the Department of Health (DOH) to share his programs addressing nutrition problems in his locality.
Mayor Roland Boie Evardone was one of the mayors from the Visayas who shared their experiences at the Mayor’s Forum for the Philippine Multisectoral Nutrition Project (PMNP) held last week.
This initiative of the Marcos Administration focuses on promoting good health and nutrition through a multisectoral approach.
PMNP is implemented by the DOH and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in collaboration with the National Nutrition Council (NNC), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Science and Technology – Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI), Department of Agriculture (DA), and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
“We sincerely thank the DOH and DSWD for giving us the opportunity to share with our fellow mayors from Regions 8, 7, and 6 our health and nutrition strategies through Project Susan.e,” Mayor Evardone said.
Project Susan.e, or Project Sustainable Nutrition and Nanay Empowerment, is a collaborative initiative aimed at addressing the critical issue of malnutrition among children in the municipality.
It has several components, including MaMa (Masaganang Pagbubuntis, Masiglang Kamusmusan/Masustansiya at Masiglang First 1,000 Days), LETRA (Literacy Enrichment Training and Reading Assistance), One Barangay One Gulay, among others.
In his presentation during the forum, Mayor Evardone shared that they successfully reduced the stunting rate in their town from 26.04% in 2023 to 14.89% in 2024.
Additionally, they improved their ranking in terms of the prevalence of underweight children from 2nd among 23 towns in the province with 10.86% in 2023 to 19th with only 4.52% in 2024.
As a recipient of the project, the LGU of Arteche received a total of P1.95 million under Component 1 of the PMNP to support their health and nutrition programs.
Out of the 236 municipalities across the country participating in the PMNP, 70 are from Eastern Visayas, including those from the provinces of Samar, Eastern Samar, Northern Samar, and Biliran.
The program, implemented over four years, aims to provide iron folic acid supplementation among pregnant women, ensure access to prenatal care services, offer nutrition-sensitive and nutrition-specific services, promote breastfeeding, and provide access to sanitary toilets.
LGUs included in the program have stunting rates higher than 17.5%, poverty incidence equal to 21% based on the 2015 Philippine Statistics Authority Small Area Estimate, KALAHI-CIDSS implementation, and are covered by the Human Development and Poverty Reduction Area program.
Throughout the four-year implementation, the region is expected to receive P943 million in funding. (ROEL T. AMAZONA)
