Marcos to pilot Cebu in revival of nutribun

CEBU, Philippines — Senator Imee Marcos wants to pilot Cebu in her plan to revive the nutribun program in the next school year to address malnutrition in public schools.

Marcos, who was in Cebu over the weekend, said it is ironic that the province is among the richest in the country but has the highest rate of malnourished children.

Marcos is pushing for the early delivery of Nutribiskwit, an improved version of the Nutribun during the 70s and 80s that includes more nutrients and protein. She said these snacks for schoolchildren shall be supplied by Cebu's very own farmers to augment their livelihood.

Earlier, Marcos called on President Rodrigo Duterte to offer cheaper food prices and better nutrition for the poor by reviving the basic goods distribution network known as Kadiwacenters and the child-feeding program Nutribun of the 70's.

In a statement, she said that while country's inflation rate has gone down, prices of basic goods remain high affecting the quality of nutrition, especially of children in low-income families.

"During the 2020 budget deliberation, it has come to my attention the list of the malnourish and staunted children in the country and I am shocked to discover that one of the highest rate is in Cebu especially in District 7 and District 2 medyo matindi. Nakausap ko na ang mga local leaders. Let's do something about this," Marcos said.

Parolita Mission, regional coordinator of the National Nutrition Council in Central Visayas, confirmed that Cebu has high malnutrition and stunting rate.

Mission said this is the reason why Cebu is among the priority areas of the government’s nutrition program.

"We have to feed them better. We need a convergence approached to combat malnutrition. The DA (Department of Agriculture), to let the farmers plant monggo, malunggay, kalabasa, kamote, coconut and other protein sources. Hopefully, we can come up with a replacement meal enrich with proteins and vitamins," Marcos said.

"We have to bring it back to the certain corner of the province because we cannot carry on like this. We really need to give our children a chance in life by allowing their full potential in their brain and physical development," she added. (FREEMAN)