The Alive and Thrive's project on improving infant and young childfeeding (IYCF) practices has achieved remarkable results in reducingunder-nutrition of children in Vietnam.
The six-year-longproject's two key counselling models, the Mat troi be tho socialfranchise and IYCF support groups, have contributed to the dramaticincreases in breast-feeding rates and additional improvement incomplementary feeding.
"The most important result of all is theimpact that these improved feeding practices will have on the health andwell-being of Vietnam's most precious resource, its children," saidEllen Piwoz, senior programme officer of the Bill and Melinda GatesFoundation that funded the Alive and Thrive initiative, at a workshop onDecember 9.
"By creating a new social norm for breast feeding,new generations of well-nourished children will be able to achieve theirfull potential in life," added Piwoz.
From 2010 to 2014,exclusive breast-feeding rates have increased from 19 to 58 percent,almost tripling in programme areas that had the Mat troi be tho socialfranchise, where mothers received IYCF counselling services.
Thenetwork of 1,100 social-franchise locations has provided counselling oninfant feeding to more than two million pregnant women, lactatingmothers and caregivers in 15 project provinces since 2010.
IYCFsupport groups were developed for remote areas that fall outside themainstream health system, which was particularly important for reachingthe ethnic and minority communities. The model helped improve exclusivebreast-feeding practices by more than five times over areas that did nothave any support groups.
The initiative's workplace lactationsupport programme, implemented in partnership with the GeneralConfederation for Labour and private enterprises throughout Vietnam,helped to set up more than 70 lactation rooms in workplaces of theGovernment, and the garment and electronics industries.
Despitesignificant progress being made, experts said that more work remains tobe done to improve child nutrition in Vietnam. They added that thesuccessful interventions need to be sustained and scaled up to reachmore people in more provinces throughout the country.
Healthfinancing is still needed to ensure that all families receive properIYCF and nutrition counselling. The rates of early initiation of breastfeeding and continued breast feeding with complementary feeding until achild is 24 months old, still need to improve.-VNA
The six-year-longproject's two key counselling models, the Mat troi be tho socialfranchise and IYCF support groups, have contributed to the dramaticincreases in breast-feeding rates and additional improvement incomplementary feeding.
"The most important result of all is theimpact that these improved feeding practices will have on the health andwell-being of Vietnam's most precious resource, its children," saidEllen Piwoz, senior programme officer of the Bill and Melinda GatesFoundation that funded the Alive and Thrive initiative, at a workshop onDecember 9.
"By creating a new social norm for breast feeding,new generations of well-nourished children will be able to achieve theirfull potential in life," added Piwoz.
From 2010 to 2014,exclusive breast-feeding rates have increased from 19 to 58 percent,almost tripling in programme areas that had the Mat troi be tho socialfranchise, where mothers received IYCF counselling services.
Thenetwork of 1,100 social-franchise locations has provided counselling oninfant feeding to more than two million pregnant women, lactatingmothers and caregivers in 15 project provinces since 2010.
IYCFsupport groups were developed for remote areas that fall outside themainstream health system, which was particularly important for reachingthe ethnic and minority communities. The model helped improve exclusivebreast-feeding practices by more than five times over areas that did nothave any support groups.
The initiative's workplace lactationsupport programme, implemented in partnership with the GeneralConfederation for Labour and private enterprises throughout Vietnam,helped to set up more than 70 lactation rooms in workplaces of theGovernment, and the garment and electronics industries.
Despitesignificant progress being made, experts said that more work remains tobe done to improve child nutrition in Vietnam. They added that thesuccessful interventions need to be sustained and scaled up to reachmore people in more provinces throughout the country.
Healthfinancing is still needed to ensure that all families receive properIYCF and nutrition counselling. The rates of early initiation of breastfeeding and continued breast feeding with complementary feeding until achild is 24 months old, still need to improve.-VNA
