adminRumbidzayi Zinyuke in Bulawayo
To eradicate the triple burden of malnutrition, Zimbabwe is ramping up its efforts by implementing nutrition-sensitive social protection measures to tackle the interconnected challenges.
Statistics show that while under nutrition, particularly in rural areas, remains a significant issue, the country’s urban areas are experiencing a concerning rise in overweight and obesity.
Micronutrient deficiencies have also been cited as a challenge that has further exacerbated the problem, leading to severe health implications, especially among women and children.
Through the National Development Strategy 1, there is a push to reduce stunting among children under the age of five from 23, 3 percent to 17 percent and decrease the prevalence of iron deficiency anaemia in women of childbearing age from 27 percent to 13 percent by 2030.
To achieve these goals, the social protection sector players are adopting a comprehensive approach to nutrition-sensitive social protection which involves implementing key programmes such as the food deficit mitigation strategy, the urban cash transfer programme, and the school feeding programme among others.
Speaking at a nutrition-sensitive social protection meeting held here yesterday, the deputy director of family and social protection in the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Mr Totamirepi Tirivavi said the country had several initiatives in place to achieve a nutrition-sensitive social protection net.
“We have our flagship programme, which is the food deficit mitigation programme. In addition, we also have the sustainable livelihood programme whereby we are building resilience in communities. Communities are engaged in the projects and we expect that in the long term, they will no longer need support from Government,” he said.
The home grown school feeding programme was also a successful initiative aimed at ensuring early childhood development, which is a key outcome under the nutrition development agenda.
Food and Nutrition Council director general Dr George Kembo stressed the importance of a multi-sectoral approach to ensure effective nutrition-sensitive social protection measures.
“The nutrition conceptual framework calls upon different players to contribute in different ways. When you total the efforts, you will have a positive impact. So we are coming from a position where we know that if you go 100 percent nutrition-specific, you only reduce the anticipated magnitude of the problem by 20 percent but nutrition-sensitive programming contributes to the bigger part, which is the 80 percent, to addressing the multifaceted nature of malnutrition,” he said.
Social protection focused on protecting and cushioning the most vulnerable households that had challenges in fulfilling their livelihood requirements.
To complement the Government’s approach in promoting nutrition-sensitive social protection measures, development partners had also come in.
Ministry of Health and Child Care deputy director of nutrition services Mr Handrea Njovo emphasised the importance of early childhood development, which encompasses health, social protection, and education.
“One of the main reasons why we are focusing on early childhood development is that we know that a good experience in early childhood will definitely lead to better health outcomes as the child grows older. We are looking at the immunisation, the identification and treatment of childhood illnesses and childhood non-communicable diseases all being addressed as part of ensuring that when a child is growing, they are growing to the utmost in terms of their health and well-being,” he said.
High levels of stunting were likely to result in more cases of childhood mortality since children who are stunted are at higher risk of disease and mortality.
Nutrition manager for UNICEF Mrs Mara Nyawo commended the country’s progress in addressing the challenge of malnutrition. She highlighted the importance of protecting the diets of young children, particularly in the context of food insecurity exacerbated by the El Niño induced drought.
Online Reporter