By NDUMBE BELL GASTON
84 more healthcare professionals have qualified to replenish the inadequate nutrition system in various parts of the country.
They were schooled by the Nestlé Nutrition Institute – sponsored African Pediatric Nutrition courses that trained 45 professionals in Douala and 39 in Yaounde recently.
The programme that has been on for more than eight years now and is out to reinforce the in depth skills of managing pediatric inadequacies, falls within the framework of government policy now dubbed “time to act” by the current Minister of Health, Dr Manaouda Malachie.
In the course content, tools and techniques were made available “to better educate parents to adopt healthy practices and behaviours to meet the specific nutritional needs of the child”.
Nestlé Cameroon acknowledges the expertise of Boston University USA and states that the course had as special focus on infant nutrition during the first 1000 days, the importance of breastfeeding, food diversification, accessing child growth and the management of severe malnutrition, adopted to the Cameroonian context.
The course, The SUN learnt, is continued amidst troubling statistics in the 2018 Cameroon Demography and Health Survey (EDS 2018) that states that nearly “6 out of 10 children under 5 years of age suffer from anaemia and almost a third of these children are stunted”.
Hence Nestlé Cameroon says they took a decisive action to contribute concrete solutions to significantly
improve nutrition, health and well-being of children.
According to Robert Helou, General Manager of Nestle Cameroon, “the African course of pediatric Nutrition illustrates Nestle’s ambition to help 50 million children lead healthier lives by 2030. Through its commitment to build, share and apply nutritional knowledge, the Nestle Nutritional Institute will continue to build the capacity of healthcare professionals on good practices in food and nutrition”. He also called on stakeholders to remain focused.