A member of Commission IX of the House of Representatives (DPR), Muhammad Rizal, has asked the government to increase the National Population and Family Planning Agency’s (BKKBN’s) budget for national stunting reduction efforts.
Rizal, here on Tuesday, said that his side will support additional budget allocation for BKKBN as part of the push to reduce the stunting rate in the country.
“Of course, we will push (stunting reduction); we even asked the budget to be increased for the needs (of stunting reduction efforts) because we expect our young generation to become a generation that is smart, strong, and has great achievements. Moreover, we want to create Indonesia’s golden generation in 2045,” he added.
Indonesia’s stunting rate has currently touched 24 percent, he noted. The figure is deemed quite high, so quick action is needed to handle and reduce stunting cases.
He said that the budget for stunting reduction needs to be increased to support achieving the government’s target of reducing the childhood stunting rate to 14 percent by 2024.
He highlighted that the central and regional governments must consistently disseminate information and educate the community as part of efforts to prevent stunting among children.
He further noted that the efforts include preparing people who want to get married to maintain healthy eating habits and go for a health check three months before getting married so that prospective mothers and their babies remain healthy during pregnancy.
“I also encourage the central and regional governments to continuously conduct dissemination (of information) to the community. Then, prepare young people who want to get married. (So that) Later, when they are pregnant, they will have understood how to take care of their health and their babies’ (health),” the legislator remarked.
Source: Antara News