In Sorong, Southwest Papua, the Indonesian Ministry of Home Affairs emphasized the need for increased collaboration to accelerate stunting reduction efforts in the province. Restuardy Daud, the ministry’s Director General of Regional Development Guidance, highlighted this during a statement on Sunday. Daud stressed the importance of aligning thoughts and concepts across various tasks and functions to effectively address stunting.
According to Antara News Agency, the objective is to maximize the implementation of eight convergent actions against stunting at both the provincial and local district levels. He commended Southwest Papua for its commendable handling of stunting, noting that the region’s approach differs from other provinces in Papua due to unique cultural and geographical challenges.
To tackle stunting, the Southwest Papua Health Office has allocated a significant budget of approximately 20 billion Indonesian Rupiah (around $1.28 million) from the regional budget (APBD). Netty Howai, the head of the Health Office, described this funding as a vital part of the provincial government’s strategic programs to reduce stunting rates.
Howai detailed several initiatives undertaken by her office, including distributing supplementary food to infants, young children, and pregnant women across five districts and one city. Additionally, a nutrition kitchen program is set to be launched in all districts and cities in November 2023.
She also reported a notable decrease in the stunting prevalence in Southwest Papua, which stood at 12 percent in October 2023, down from 19.9 percent in July of the same year.
The Indonesian government has prioritized stunting reduction, aiming to reduce its prevalence to 14 percent by 2024. Nationally, Indonesia’s stunting prevalence experienced a decline of 2.8 percentage points, reaching 21.6 percent in 2022, a decrease from 24.4 percent in 2021, as indicated by the 2022 Indonesian Nutritional Status Survey (SSGI).