Group photo of participants
By André Gakwaya;
Nyanza: When the entire District of Gisagara has made operational the nutritional nursery or “Irerero” in all its villages or imidugudu, we can be confident that we will eradicate, the shunting at District level, according to the Vice Mayor of Social Affairs, Mrs. Clemence Gisengayire.
“Eradicating cases of shunting at the level of our District requires coordination of the various institutions within the framework of the DPEM program (District Program for the Eradication of Malnutrition). We hold regular meetings of 15 members who are the executive secretaries of the sectors, the dispensary holders, the agronomist, the staff of the health unit. This committee is chaired by the Vice Mayor in charge of Social Affairs and can be expanded. It also exists in each of the thirteen sectors of the District. This is a national program that provides the site where mothers meet to learn how to prepare complete nutritious foods for children aged 2 to 5 and even 6 in each village. They usually meet at the village health advisor or a member of the Women’s Council. The bottom line is that this household enjoys the trust of residents and is equipped with the necessary to organize a cooking demonstration once or twice a week “, said Gasengayire.
She made this statement in Nyanza (Southern Province), during the presentation of a study on the eradication shunting among children carried out by SNV, six local associations of the Civil Society, in collaboration with Research Institute, IFPRI, and with the support of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The participants came from the Districts of Gisagara and Ruhango, and are at the forefront of implementing the program to eradicate malnutrition at the district level.
She reminded that the food to be cooked comes from the harvest of households who each contribute 100 Rwf for the purchase of oil or small fish. The nutritional nursery also provides milk, so that a child can benefit a liter of milk a week. Some villages are advanced in the implementation of this program. Partners such as the NGO Compassion provide support to these crèches.
“Children take porridge or milk and eat nutritious food prepared on the site. Children who come to the Irerero or nutritional nursery are those who have not many resources. Some are vulnSome are vulnerable. During the meeting, we campaign to promote hygiene and sanitation. Mothers are sensitized on nutritious food preparation and other family planning (FP) programs, HIV /AIDS, sexual and reproductive health, early pregnancy and their negative impact on the individual and the community. Some villages have appropriated the implementation of the nutritional nursery which is increasingly rooted as a local solution to fight against malnutrition “, explained the Vice Mayor.
The Gishubi sector in Gisagara District has 48 nutritional nursery, one village with two crèches, according to Théogene Niyongabo, supervisor of the Gishubi Health Center.
“On average, each nursery welcomes 80 children. There are a total of 4017 children in the Gishubi sector. We have been implementing this initiative since January 2019, and it is bearing fruit in the eradication of shunting cases. We have just spent seven months without registering a new case, apart from those we hospitalized and treated at the beginning of this program. Children, mothers and pregnant women arrive at the village site every Monday and Thursday. They prepare food or learn how to do it while children learn to wash their hands, to align themselves. Mothers are made aware of the importance of local health insurance, the examination of the pregnant mother at the Health Center”, said Niyongira.
“The Gishubi sector remains a model for the implementation of the” Irerero ” at District level. This good practice should be extended to all villages in the District as a solution to eradicate the shunting cases. The whole country must be inspired by it “, said one parent. (End)