By
Tricitynews
Chandigarh
05th Jan,2019:- Amway India, the country’s largest FMCG direct
selling company, today launched the ‘POWER OF 5’ campaign to address the rising
problem of malnutrition among children in India. In line with Amway’s vision of
helping people live better lives, the
Power of 5 is a community-based campaign targeted at mothers and
caregivers of children under the age of 5 years. The campaign aims to improve
the nutritional knowledge and practices inclusive of complementary feeding,
hygiene practices, growth monitoring and dietary diversity. The campaign
further aims to identify and manage the malnourished children, and those with infections,
by developing synergies among the service providers of associated departments
(Integrated Child Development Scheme, Health and Sanitation) for improved
services and timely referrals.
According to the World Health
Organization (WHO), roughly 7 million children under the age of 5 die each year
from preventable causes across the globe. Malnutrition is the underlying cause
of 45% of these deaths according to the WHO. In India, malnutrition among
children is a major concern too, belying nation’s increasing economic
achievement. According to a recent report by the World Bank, approximately 8
million Indian children suffer from Severe Acute Malnutrition (very low weight
to height ratio). According to the National Health Family Survey, 36% children
in India below the age of 5 years are under-weight. The report further states
that 38% are stunted, 21% are wasted, 7.5% are severely wasted, and 58% are
anemic.
Speaking
about the launch of this program, Anshu Budhraja, CEO, Amway India, said that at
Amway India, we are committed to use our vast global experience in nutrition
and wellness to contribute to the Government of India’s National Nutrition
Mission to raise the nutrition levels in the country. From our experience, we
understand that the foundation for a healthy development and overall well-being
starts with optimal nutrition in the first 5 years of life. With the launch of
the Power of 5 campaign, our aim is to raise awareness on the issue of
childhood malnutrition and bring in the much-needed behavioral shift in mothers
and communities at large. This program has been very successful globally -
benefitting over a lakh children across more than 23 countries every year. We
are pleased to launch this initiative in India and hope to make a positive
impact in the lives of as many children and families as possible.
The campaign aims to mobilize
communities to encourage participation and to empower individuals by raising
awareness of the services and entitlements among beneficiaries. Additionally,
ASHA workers, ANM &Anganwadi workers will be sensitized to drive the
behavior change among the parents and communities to establish synergies for
timely inclusive service deliveries to the identified target beneficiaries.
With MAMTA Health Institute for Mother and Child as its implementing partner,
Amway will reach out to and benefit around 10,000 children directly through
mothers and 30,000 individuals indirectly (parents, caregivers and community
members) in West Delhi’s Kirari area in the first pilot year.
Commenting on the partnership with
Amway, Dr. Sunil Mehra, Executive Director, MAMTA Health Institute for Mother
and Child, said that there are many underprivileged children residing in this
area who face health problems that can otherwise be simply tackled by slight
changes in their nutritional intake. The Power Of 5 campaign will have a
monumental impact on the lives of these children as it seeks to bring about a
fundamental change in their daily diet. We are really optimistic about the
final outcome of this initiative.
