Health checkups for Pregnant women and children & Representatives of Delegation of the European Union to Vietnam visit Nutrition and Livelihood Project in Nam Mau Commune, Ba Be District, Bac Kan

On September 8^th – 10^th, 2014, the donor of Project on Nutrition and Livelihoods in Nam Mau commune – The European Union in Vietnam – paid a working visit to the project management unit. This is the second time the donor has visited the project site. In the visit, the donor representatives watched a video clip about the summary of activities which were implemented last year and listened to the project management unit sharing its difficulties and challenges emerged during the project implementation.

The donor representatives also spent 02 days going to remote villages to visit project beneficiaries and learn about positive changes in the lives and behavior of the local people thanks to the project. The donor was very pleased to see that the project activities have been well received by local people and applied for the sake of improving their lives. Health clubs and centralized dining spots have seen the cheerful participation of mothers and children under 3 years old. The children were interested in participating and ate more food at the centralized dining spots. The mothers were facilitated to learn knowledge and skills of cooking and childcare properly. The model of raising pigs was very successful. Nearly 30% of households sold pigs, making profit higher than investment capital, and bought piglets to reproduce. Vegetable garden model was not only maintained but also replicated. Some households which harvested a large number of vegetables contributed to the centralized dining spots. At schools, students and teachers still keep the habit of washing hands twice a day at school (before and after class). 2 posters showing the guidance for students on proper teeth-brushing and hand-washing were hung neatly on the walls between schools, where students regularly pass by and stop to read. 5 water supply spots in schools funded by the project containing 20 liter stainless steel tanks, pipes, wash basins for students remain in good condition and quality after a year. Village roads are much cleaner without any rubbish, candy wraps, and plastic bags. Cattle manure is no longer discarded on the roads. Households were conscious to clean up after cattle defecate. Some families voluntarily moved the cattle barns behind the house and dug holes for handling manure, as a model for other farmers to follow. Each village formed a self-governing group, cleaning the village every 2 weeks. Each village has 2 inorganic waste handling areas. The Delegation of the European Union obviously recognized positive changes across the entire project area and was very impressed as the European Union’s fund has been used effectively, bringing many benefits to people .

In addition to the visit of the donor, RTCCD also implemented free health check programs for pregnant women and children under 3 years of age in remote villages of Nam Mau commune. This activity has been carried out every 3 months over the past year and has become a favorite activity of the families and women in the isolated villages in this mountainous area.

On September 9^th and 10^th, 2014, RTCCD and 02 doctors from the Department of Obstetrics and Pediatrics of Bac Kan Provicial Hospital gave health check and provided free medicine for a total of 54 children under 3 years of age and pregnant women in 5 mountainous villages such as Khau Qua, Nam Dai, Dan May, Na Phai, Na Nghe of Nam Mau commune. For women and children who got sick, antibiotics and vitamins were allocated according to the dose. For pregnant women, iron and calcium were provided for all women. All the children under 3 years of age who joined this program were provided with multiple micronutrient syrup, enhancing vitamins and minerals for children. Through examination and consultation, doctors found that women and children in mountainous areas currently are having some health problems as follows:

1) The most common health problems in children are malnutrition, respiratory infections and infectious diseases related to limited sanitary conditions like ophthalmia, conjunctivitis, tympanitis and skin diseases.

2) Pregnant women experience anemia and calcium deficiency, and bad personal hygiene. Due to the lack of knowledge about pregnancy and delivery, pregnant women did not go for prenatal care regularly, as a consequence, they did not know their expected due date to prepare.

The project on “Nutrition and Livelihoods” and doctors submitted a report to the communal medical center to propose referrals for children suspected with heart disease, severe malnutrition and other diseases to hospital of higher levels for treatment.