In the carrier of people’s health care, child health care is a difficult and challenging task but an honorable responsibility of health sector.
Health care activities have been conducted comprehensively with both treatment and prevention, in which improvement of child nutritional status plays an essential role. The reduction of child malnutrition has been considered an indicator for social development that has been integrated in the resolutions of the Party and the National Assembly and been supervised by local government.
Child malnutrition activities have been conducted in the last 30 years with various scales. Since 1998, it has become a project within the national health target program directly operated by the health sector in all communes nation-wide with the main objective as to reduce malnutrition, improve stature and status of children.
In the last 10 years, the health system from central to local with active supports of various ministries, sectors, agencies, domestic and international social organizations, as well as the community, has overcome many difficulties to gain remarkable achievements, accomplishing assigned tasks and contributing to the improved child nutritional status.
The improvement of individual nutritional status is decisive to comprehensive development of the society that leads to the civilization of each country. Human is always the key factor in socio-economical development strategy of the country. To improve the quality of human resources, we should start from improving nutritional status, particularly that of children.
Vietnam has been affected heavily by the aftermaths of wars for many years. Poor development and poverty have been always a threat in and after wars. Economical constrains are the basic reason that lead to poor nutritional status of the people, especially that of children. Beside poverty, malnutrition is also the consequence of population ignorance about nutrition care, particularly care for children. Improper knowledge and habit have made children difficult to growth to the optimal.
Hochiminh used to expressed his special love and care for children. His famous saying “Growth a tree for the benefit of 10 years; Growth a human for the benefit of 100 years” has been remembered and practiced by Vietnamese people and government. As He has defined “Provision of good care and education for children is the responsibility of our Party and our people”, the National Assembly ratified “Laws on child protection, care and education” in 1991. In May 30, 1994, the Secretariat of the Party Central Committee issued the instruction 38CT/TW on Child protection, care and education. In July 30, 1998, the standing committee of the political bureau issued the instruction on reinforcing the management of child protection, care and education. Vietnamese Party and Government have always considered human a key factor in socio-economical development strategy.
This is also the commitment of the Government for the International Convention on the Rights of the Child towards the development of future generations.
Since 1994, the child malnutrition control program has been conducted in nearly 3000 disadvantaged communes under the Committee for Child Protection and Care. In this early stage, the program achieved initial results with the reduction of child malnutrition to 38.7% in 1997.
At this stage, the Government decided to handover the program to the MOH for management and instruction. The MOH has identified the National Institute of Nutrition as the focal institution to develop strategies and solutions and to implement the program.