Bagong utang ng Pinas, aprubado ng World Bank

INAPRUBAHAN ng World Bank (WB) ang $178.1-million o  ₱9.7 bilyong pisong loan  o  bagong utang ng Pilipinas na naglalayong palakasin ang pagsisikap nito laban sa malnutrisyon, isang linggo bago pa bumaba sa kanyang tanggapan si Pangulong Rodrigo Roa Duterte.

Ang “fresh credit” ay para sa Philippine Multisectoral Nutrition Project, na susuporta sa probisyon ng  nutrisyon at healthcare services sa  primary care at community levels na  kabilang sa 235 munisipalidad na mayroong mataas na kahirapan at malnutrition incidence.

Sinabi ng Washington-based lender na tampok sa nasabing proyekto ang “package of nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions along with social behavior change and communications ones.”

Kabilang sa mga  sinasabing “interventions for households with pregnant women and children under two years old” ay ang “infant and young feeding, regular growth monitoring, multiple micronutrient supplements for kids aged 6-23 months, dietary supplementation for nutritionally-at-risk pregnant women at treatment of moderate, severe acute malnutrition.”

“The persistence of high levels of childhood undernutrition in the Philippines, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, could lead to a significant increase in inequality of opportunities in the country,” ayon kay  Ndiamé Diop, World Bank Country Director para sa  Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines, at Thailand.

“Improving children’s nutritional status leads to the Philippines’ target of strengthening human capital along with its economic rebound and long-term growth prospects,” ayon kay Diop.

Sa kabilang dako, suportado rin ng proyekto ang  behavioral change campaigns para sa target na pamilya at komunidad na may  “crucial” behaviors  para sa maayos na  nutrition outcomes para sa mga kababaihan at kabataan.

Kabilang aniya rito ang paghuhugas ng kamay na may gamit ng sabon sa critical instances, improved sanitation at access sa ligtas na  inuming tubig,  early child-care at development, nutrition-focused childcare development activities, at pagpo-promote ng  access sa Pantawid Pamilya program.

Sinabi pa rin ng World Bank na ang proyekto ay naglalayong makapagbigay ng  performance-based grants para sa  local government units.

“These are linked to the delivery of pre-defined nutrition, maternal and child services, and improvements in planning and budgeting for nutrition projects at the local level,” ayon sa WB.

“Undernutrition and exposure to risks and adversities during the first 1,000 days of the child’s life can disrupt cognitive, emotional, and physical development and hold children back from reaching their full potential, thus affecting the formation of the country’s human capital, explained Nkosinathi Mbuya, World Bank Senior Nutrition Specialist, East Asia and Pacific Region.”

“Therefore, interventions to improve nutritional outcomes must focus on this age group and women of child-bearing age,”  dagdag na pahayag ni Diop.

Samantala, pormal namang magsisimula ang termino ni President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. sa Hunyo  30. (Daris Jose)