Nutrition stakeholders from the local government units in Cavite gathered in a Nutrition Forum to culminate the 48th Nutrition Month celebration with the theme, “New Normal sa nutrisyon, sama-samang gawan ng solusyon!” on July 27, 2022 at the Cavite Collaboration Center for Public Health in Trece Martires City.
The forum with the tagline, Strengthened Action on Nutrition: A Collaborative Action of the BNC called on LGU nutrition forerunners composed of Liga ng mga Barangay Presidents from the cities and municipalities of Cavite, City/Municipal Nutrition Action Officers (C/MNAOs), Provincial Nutrition Committee members and other partner agencies to intensify and invest in nutrition programs in their respective communities in the midst of the pandemic.
Dr. Nonie John Dalisay, OIC-Provincial Health Office welcomed all the participants to the event which aims to raise awareness on the importance of investing in nutrition.
Ms. Lourdes Orongan delivered the nutrition month message on behalf of Regional Nutrition Program Coordinator Carina Santiago, which highlighted the correlation between nutrition and resilience and called for solidarity to be part of the solution to end malnutrition.
This was further stressed in the inspirational message from Vice Governor Athena Bryana Tolentino delivered by Ms. Theresa Llorente to strengthen nutrition interventions and shift from pandemic to endemic paradigm through evidenced-based and innovative solutions.
During the program, retiring members of the Provincial Nutrition Committee-Technical Working Group as well as retiring C/MNAOs were recognized and awarded Certificates of Appreciation from the Provincial Nutrition Council. Awardees from the PNC-TWG include Ms. Rebecca Patricio from PICAD and Ms. Teodora Salgado from PPDO. C/MNAO awardees were composed of Ms. Elizabeth M. Hernandez – CNAO of Dasmarinas City, Ms. Eriberta Ayos – MNAO of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, Ms. Basilisa Feraer – MNAO of Indang, and Ms. Lydia Villanueva – MNAO of Tanza.
The plenary started with a talk on Why Invest in Nutrition delivered by Ms. Lourdes Orongan from the National Nutrition Council-CALABARZON where she shared the eight compelling reasons in putting premium and investing in nutrition ranging from its implications on health, economy and in the overall development of the country.
Ms. Marinelle Juangco from the Department of the Interior and the Local Government-Cavite talked about Unifying the Direction in Nutrition and the different legal bases that mandate local government units specifically at the barangay level to pursue and implement nutrition programs.
City Councilor Jojit Desingano shared the best practices of Barangay San Jose, Tagaytay City during his term as Barangay Chairman. The innovations and firm resolve to implement nutrition programs targeting not only the health aspect but other concerns including the environment have won them various recognition from the city, the province and the region. Their barangay has also been chosen in many benchmarking activities of different LGUs and organizations.
Participants signed a commitment of support to nutrition programs and the advoccay to invest more for successful nutrition interventions.
In closing, Dr. Maria Victoria Salvatus-Torres enjoined all the nutrition stakeholders to promote nutrition not only during nutrition month celebration but all year round as an integral part of public health.
ITB – SUPPLY AND DELIVERY OF MONOBLOCK CHAIRS AND MONOBLOCK OVAL TABLES FOR DISTRIBUTION PROVINCEWIDE