The Head of the Department of Public Health at the Health Services Academy Islamabad, Professor Dr. Shahzad Ali Khan, has identified malnutrition as a massive problem in Pakistan and announced that the country has been ranked second on the stunting growth index after Afghanistan.
During a webinar on ‘Nutrition Integration for Social Protection and Early Education’ organized by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute, Dr. Khan stated that the minimum acceptable diets, meals, and minimum diet diversity in the country are of low quality and quantity, and require improvements.
SDPI Senior Research Fellow, Dr. Shafqat Munir, stated that financial and infrastructure outlook is essential to resolve the socioeconomic issues, adding that equal opportunities and equity space in risk and crisis management must be created to protect social integration.
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The Focal Person for Nutrition, Ehsaas, and Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division, Dr. Rozina Khalid, apprised the attendees of the webinar about the workings of the Ehsaas Nashunuma Programme which is a health and nutrition conditional cash transfer program aimed at addressing malnutrition in and the stunted growth of children.
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Health experts shed light on the importance of other factors besides malnutrition such as pre-marriage counseling for adolescent girls, social protection, agriculture, and education to improve the overall nutritional value of food and daily lifestyles.
