Ninety – four (94) City/ Municipal Nutrition Program Coordinators (C/MNPCs) from the 17 Local Government Units of Metro Manila pledged their commitment to move the Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition (PPAN) forward for nutrition improvement on January 29, 2019 during the PPAN Movers’ General Assembly.

The C/MNPCs provide technical assistance to the Nutrition Action Officers. They are responsible for overseeing the implementation of the nutrition program in the city/municipality. They also play a vital role in supervising, training and monitoring the activities of Barangay Nutrition Scholars

“These C/DNPCs are now called the PPAN Movers of NCR. The public health NDs are key players in moving PPAN forward”, said NNC – NCR’s Nutrition Program Coordinator Milagros Elisa V. Federizo.

As PPAN Movers in the region, they will assist in organizing and conducting local nutrition action planning workshop, in finalizing local nutrition action plans, and in integrating nutrition concerns in local development plans and the annual investment program; assist the LGUs in implementing nutrition –specific intervention; coordinate with different stakeholders to assist in the implementation of various nutrition programs; assist in monitoring and evaluation of local nutrition action plan; participate in the data gathering and response during health emergencies and disasters; act as resource person, facilitator in capability building activities and advocacies; assist in documenting good practices, initiative and indigenous knowledge and practices related to nutrition; and perform other functions as may be assigned by the NAO and/or their immediate supervisor in relation to job task.

“For sustained improvement in the nutrition situation, nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive programs should be implemented to address the immediate and underlying causes of maternal and child undernutrition”, NPC Federizo said.

The PPAN nutrition-specific programs are Infant and Young Child Feeding Program, Integrated Management of Acute Malnutrition Program, Dietary Supplementation Program, Nutrition Promotion Program for Behavior Change Program, Micronutrient Supplementation Program, Food Fortification Program, Nutrition in Emergencies Program and Overweight and Obesity Management and Prevention Program.

Nutrition-sensitive programs, on the other hand, are development programs that are purposely tweaked to reach out to nutritionally vulnerable families to produce nutrition outcomes by increasing physical and economic access to food and improving the environment for health.

With the PPAN Movers in the region, the NNC-NCR is optimistic that the LGUs, agencies/organizations, and stakeholders will be mobilized into action; communities will be empowered to become food secure and practice good nutrition; and will make the PPAN work for nutrition improvement. (ELF/NPC MEVF/NNC-NCR)