At a webinar on Tuesday, the agency's training, research, and development deputy, Muhammad Rizal. M. Damanik, noted that the two conditions can disrupt the development of quality and competitive human resources.
Stunting is a growth and development disorder caused by the lack of nutrition over long periods of time, which can affect all the organs in the body, he noted.
Stunting is caused by lack of knowledge on nutrition, economical factors, personal hygiene issues, environmental health issues, and disease, he said.
Meanwhile, obesity is triggered by consumption that is not followed by appropriate physical activity, he said. Obesity can also be caused by genetic factors, disease, and stress, he added.
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The prevalence of children born with stunting reduced to 24.4 percent at the end of 2021 despite the difficulties that the pandemic presented to families in Indonesia, he informed.
This is an improvement when compared to the stunting rate in 2019, which was recorded at 27.67 percent, he said.
However, the figure for 2021 still exceeded the limit that the World Health Organization (WHO) has set, namely 20 percent, he added.
The BKKBN will make a national action plan for all provinces to deal with nutrition issues, he informed.
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The program will target future parents, childbearing age adults, pregnant and breastfeeding mothers, as well as infants to prevent stunting, he said.
The National Population and Family Planning Agency, as the organizer of the national stunting reduction acceleration program, is collaborating with the private sector in the Stunting Handling Healthy Kitchen (DASHAT) program, he added.
The program prioritizes people's empowerment at the level of villages and is focused on providing balanced nutrition to families at risk of stunting by utilizing local resources, he informed.
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Translator: Nanien Yuniar, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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