Regional presidential candidates in Ayacucho are

committed to child nutrition

The Regional Government of Ayacucho has been implementing “CRECER WARI”
(GROW WARI), which is the regional intervention strategy designed to combat
childhood malnutrition.

The joint work of the regional government, aid organizations and civil society to
implement comprehensive and decentralized campaigns has contributed to a reduction
in chronic childhood malnutrition from 36.8% to 31.2% (5.6 points percent) between
2007 and 2009, and a reduction from 64.6% to 54.4% of anemia in children younger
than five years old. This progress is significant, but the state of nutritional deficiency
among children is above the national average, according to the 2009 National Survey of
Demography and Family Health by INEI.

The Regional Government of Ayacucho and the institutions that make up the Alliance
Against Maternal Neonatal Mortality and the Initiative Against Childhood Malnutrition
organized the Regional Forum "Allin Kausay - Good Life: Progress, Challenges and
Policies to reduce maternal and neonatal mortality." which was held last August 5.

One of the objectives of the Forum was for the candidates for Ayacucho Regional
President to commit to the national goals of reducing malnutrition and chronic anemia in
children younger than 5 years old and reducing maternal and newborn deaths.

The institution representatives explained that the causes of malnutrition are numerous,
highlighting the following: limited access to comprehensive health care; food insecurity;
lack of access to clean water and basic sanitation; low education level of families,
especially mothers; inadequate feeding and child care practices; limited reproductive
health information and high rates of teen pregnancy; poor housing conditions and low
income.

The candidates for the Regional Presidency pledged to reduce chronic malnutrition in
children younger than five years old to less than 20%, reduce anemia in children
younger than three years old to less than 25%, reduce the number of maternal deaths
by 35%, reduce the number of deaths of infants younger than one month by 30% and
implement the Regional Strategy "CRECER WARI" as state policy in the Ayacucho
region.

The institutions that make up the initiative against Childhood Malnutrition are: Action
Against Hunger, ADRA, CARE, CARITAS, FAO, Future Generations, Institute of
Nutritional Research, Roundtable for Poverty Reduction, PAHO / WHO, Plan
International, WFP, PRISMA, UNFPA, UNICEF and USAID. They are working to obtain
the pledges of candidates for the regional presidencies in the remaining regions of the
country.