Government, World Bank partnering to improve nutrition

The government and the World Bank have approved two new projects costing more than 451 billion kip (US$52 million) that will jointly address high levels of stunting in the northern provinces.
A project titled Reducing Rural Poverty and Malnutrition will lay the foundations of a national social protection system and support the delivery of a conditional cash transfer programme for improved nutrition.
In addition, the Scaling-Up Water Supply, Sanitation, and Hygiene Project will improve access to water, sanitation, and hygiene services.
Agreements on more than 234 billion kip (US$27 million) in funding for the nutrition project and more than 216 billion kip (US$25 million) for the water project were signed on Thursday by Deputy Minister of Finance Mrs Thipphakone Chanthavongsa and World Bank Country Manager for Laos, Nicola Pontara.

The projects will be implemented in the provinces of Xieng Khuang, Huaphan, Phongsaly and Oudomxay, which suffer from stunting levels above 40 percent.
According to an official report, childhood stunting is associated with poor health, delayed child development, underperformance in school, and eventually reduced employment opportunities, and thus contributes to keeping communities in poverty. Mr Pontara said “Investing in improved nutrition means building the nation’s human capital, which will help make Laos’ economic growth more inclusive in the future.”
 “We are pleased to support two projects in sectors that are critical to reducing child malnutrition. Stunting is a multidimensional phenomenon and it is important to tackle simultaneously both demand and supply factors to help the next generation of Lao children grow up stronger and healthier,” he added.
The new social protection project will target poor households and provide a safety net through a cash transfer programme.
These transfers will be conditional upon the adoption of improved health, nutrition, and hygiene practices, and will support the well-being of children during the critical first 1,000 days of life.
The new water project will expand the delivery of water supply and sanitation in the same villages to tackle waterborne diseases that increase the risk of a child becoming malnourished.
It will also strengthen the capacity of local authorities to monitor, evaluate, and provide technical support to communities to manage water supply and sustain good sanitation and hygiene practices.
Mrs Thipphakone said the government highly values the support of the World Bank, particularly for human and rural development.
These projects will contribute to an improvement in living conditions and to poverty reduction by supporting access to improved water supply, sanitation and hygiene services as well as by providing a nutrition-sensitive social safety net to poor and vulnerable families.
These two new projects complement other ongoing and upcoming projects funded by the World Bank in health, education, and diversified food production, which together target the same households in the four northern provinces as part of a multi-sectoral nutrition convergence approach.

By Times Reporters
(Latest Update May 10, 2019)