ZFF gathers local leaders, health teams to a learning forum in Cebu

CEBU CITY -- The Zuellig Family Foundation (ZFF) gathered governors, mayors, and provincial health team core members of Cebu, Siargao, Sarangani, and Basilan in Cebu City at Golden Prince Hotel on May 21 for a learning forum to strengthen health outcomes and combat malnutrition. 

“Effective local nutrition governance starts with leaders. Nutrition should be considered as a major development outcome that local governments through their leaders would want to address and improve,” Austere Panadero, ZFF President and Executive Director said, in his opening message during the event.

The forum entitled “Responsive Nutrition Leadership and Governance for Faster Improvement of Nutrition Outcomes” highlighted the insights, valuable learnings, innovations, and achievements of recent local health governance projects implemented in Siargao, Sarangani, and Basilan.

According to ZFF Chairman, Ernesto Garilao, the ZFF, through the support of the Kristian Gerhard Jebsen Foundation (KGJF) for the provinces of Sarangani and Basilan and Alumni Association of Asian Institute of Management (AAAIM) for AHON Siargao municipalities – Burgos, Sta. Monica and Pilar, worked together to strengthen the Health and Nutrition Systems to combat malnutrition and improve health indicators in identified project sites.

F1KD Provincial Nutrition Governance Program (PNGP)

Garilao said that ZFF’s F1KD Provincial Nutrition Governance Program (PNGP), in partnership with KGJF and implemented in Basilan and Sarangani, is slated for completion in June 2024.

The Barangay Nutrition Program component addressed food and nutrition security, behavior change interventions, and established community engagement and leadership among barangay and indigenous people leaders, Garilao added.

Municipal Nutrition Governance Program (MNGP) In the municipalities of Pilar, Burgos, and Sta. Monica, Siargao, ZFF partnered with the AAAIM, to implement the Municipal Nutrition Governance Program (MNGP) under the AHON Siargao Capacity Enhancement Project (CAPE). The program’s thrust is to empower local government units on health and governance.

The project ensures that efforts on pregnancy tracking and monitoring, prenatal services, immunization, supplemental feeding for nutritionally-at-risk (NAR) pregnant and moderate acute malnourished (MAM) children, among others, are in place.

The municipalities of Burgos, Pilar, and Santa Monica successfully completed the Municipal Nutrition Governance Program - Nutrition and Health Leadership (MNGP-NutriHeaL) with promising results.

From 2022 to 2023, all three municipalities achieved a significant increase in their Operation Timbang (OPT) coverage rate, reaching an average of 85% coverage for three municipalities. A higher coverage rate in OPT paints a clearer picture of their current nutrition landscape and allows for data-driven planning and programming.

As the program closes, the local governments of Burgos, Pilar, and Sta. Monica believe that their work has just started and with renewed enthusiasm to ensure their children grow to be healthy individuals who will be the future leaders of their municipalities. The municipalities and leaders remain steadfast in realizing their vision to reduce malnutrition rates in their communities.

By 2025, Burgos aims to reduce stunting rates to 11.5%, while Pilar and Santa Monica aim for a figure below 10%. The Municipal and City Nutrition Governance Program was also implemented in Basilan in 2021.

Basilan has made substantial progress with its nutrition numbers, witnessing a decrease in stunting from 22.67% in 2022 to 14.51% in 2023. This positive trend was accompanied by reduced wasting rates and a decline in the number of nutritionally at-risk pregnant women.

To enhance health governance systems, a data dashboard called Pook Malusog dashboard, was also piloted in Siargao (Burgos, Pilar, and Sta. Monica) and in Basilan (Isabela City, Lamitan City, Maluso, Sumisip, Tipo-Tipo) earlier this year.

The dashboard makes data collection and analysis faster and empowers LGU partners in data analysis for planning, advocacy, and immediate response to health challenges.

In attendance to the learning forum were Basilan Governor Jim Hataman-Salliman; Bantayan, Cebu Mayor Arthur E. Despi; Mayor Maria Liza Resurreccion of Pilar, Siargao; Mayor Angie Arcena of Burgos, Siargao; and Mayor Arwela Dolar of Sta. Monica, Siargao.

Also present during the event were Dr. Azucena Dayanghirang, Assistant Secretary and Executive Director, National Nutrition Council and Dr. Cecilia Acuin, a Nutrition expert.  Dr. Ma. Ofelia Alcantara, Philippine Multisectoral Nutrition Project (PMNP) Lead, Department of Health (DOH) Central office also shared her insights and message through a video transformation in addressing nutrition challenges and inequities, both in normal and disruptive times.

The role of Zuellig Family Foundation

ZFF aligned the critical elements of its various nutrition programs and projects with the Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition or PPAN. The PPAN has pinpointed four key areas to achieve the vision of reducing all forms of malnutrition: Food and Diets, Practices and Behavior, Multisectoral Nutrition-related Interventions, and an Enabling Environment.

Through comprehensive implementation at the LGU level, ZFF’s programs are poised to significantly and effectively contribute to realizing the goals outlined in the PPAN 2023-2028.

The Zuellig Family Foundation (ZFF) engages in public health leadership and governance training and public health advocacy.  Its strategy, the ZFF Health Change Model, has training, practicum, mentoring, and coaching components to build enrolled public health leaders like governors, mayors, and health officials. 

ZFF builds capacities in understanding the complexities of the healthcare system, accepting their roles in the existing health challenges and taking steps to come up with immediate and sustainable solutions.

The Foundation also advocates for equitable policies in public health and governance. To mainstream and scale-up its change strategy, it has partnered with local and international partners including the Department of Health, USAID, UNICEF, UNFPA, as well as academic institutions nationwide. (Photos: MBCNewman)