To this end, the government continues to conduct comprehensive intervention to prevent stunting, he stated.
"An example of this is through the blood supplement tablets provision program for teenage girls and supplementary nutrition program for pregnant mothers," he noted.
According to Effendy, the provision of blood supplement tablets is very important to prevent anemia and improve the health of teenage girls, who will become mothers.
When these girls marry one day and become pregnant, their health will be in good condition, and they will also give birth to healthy babies, he elaborated.
The minister also expects regional governments to continue to strengthen education and dissemination of information on the importance of balanced nutrition for pregnant mothers and infants as well as the importance of preventing anemia in teenage girls.
Meanwhile, Health Quality Improvement and Population Development Coordination Deputy at the ministry Agus Suprapto remarked that the government continues to ensure fulfillment of nutritional intake for pregnant mothers.
This is undertaken through integrated health posts (posyandus) as well as public health centers (puskesmas).
"The government continues to complement puskesmas with USG to improve identification of pregnant mothers. Meanwhile, during the post-labor period, the program to support the fulfillment of infants' animal protein consumption is also conducted," he remarked.
This effort is undertaken to achieve the stunting reduction target in 2024, Suprapto noted.
"As we all know, stunting prevalence has to be reduced by three percent per year until 14 percent in 2024. Meanwhile, the current stunting prevalence is 24.4 percent," he remarked.
This figure was obtained from the 2021 Indonesian Infants' Nutrition Status Survey (SSGBI).
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Translator: Wuryanti P, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Sri Haryati
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