Together with school lunch offer, the School Milk Program for ethnic minority children funded by Khanh Hoa Province has helped reduce the prevalence of child malnutrition...
Together with school lunch offer, the School Milk Program for ethnic minority children funded by Khanh Hoa Province has helped reduce the prevalence of child malnutrition in terms of underweight in the 2 mountainous districts.
Weight gain and school attendance improvement
A Xay Nursery School in Khanh Nam Commune, Khanh Vinh District, with 153 students, including 139 ethnic minority people, has a high rate of child malnutrition. Principal Nguyen Thi Hong Lam says besides the free lunch, the children need more nutrition to improve their physical health. The School Milk Program starting from the beginning of the school year 2017 - 2018 helped reduce the malnutrition rate to 10% from 20% at the end of the school year. Cao Thi Diem, a mother of a third-grader named Cao Dac Duy says, “My little son drinks milk free of charge and he has gained weight healthily. I hope the beneficial program will last for a long time in disadvantaged mountainous communities.”
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Le Thi Thuong, Principal of Hoa Mi Nursery School, Khanh Trung Commune, Khanh Vinh District says more than 85% of the students are ethnic minority children. Students’ parents are satisfied with their children benefiting from the School Milk Program. Nguyen Thi Hong Van, a mother of a kindergartener named Ngo Hoa Binh says, “My child’s weight has improved thanks to the School Milk Program. I only pay some VND300,000. I hope that the program will provide complete funding in mountainous communities.”
The child malnutrition rate in Khanh Son District is high, up to 29 - 35% or even 50% in some communes. After the implementation of the school milk program, the figure has dropped to 13-20%. The school attendance has also improved.
Further nutrition propaganda
The milk provider was selected in the bidding. The School Milk Program benefits 12-36-month-olds and 3-6 year-olds at kindergartens and nursery schools in the 2 districts of Khanh Son and Khanh Vinh. The milk is served for 9 months every school year, starting from September 2017 till December 2020, 5 times a week, each with a 110ml carton of milk for kindergarteners and 3 times a week, each with a 180ml carton of milk for nursery age children. The service is free for children of ethnic minority and beneficiaries of social welfare, poor families and marginally poor families. The milk is funded by the budget (80%), a milk company (20%) for children of beneficiaries of social welfare. The milk is funded by the budget (50%), a milk company (20%) and parents (30%) for other children, according to Le Dinh Thuan, Vice-Director of Khanh Hoa Department of Education & Training.
Nutrition is an important part of your child’s overall wellbeing and nutrition improvement is required with long-term care. Khanh Hoa Department of Education & Training will continue giving nutrition improvement and health care guidance to kindergarten and nursery schools and closely cooperating with children’s parents in monitoring the program implementation as well as the milk quality; given suggestions to Khanh Hoa People’s Committee to expand the program across the province.
T.Viet
Translated by N.T
