The project mobilized 1032 volunteers under component 3 “Scale-up Nutrition Improvements”

Starting from February 2, 2019, seminars were launched for activists of rural health committees in the pilot Ayil Aymaks of the Agricultural Productivity and Nutrition Improvement Project on the themes “Nutrition for Mothers during 1000 Days”, “Diverse Nutrition and Reducing Consumption of Harmful Foods”.

In total, under component 3 “Scale-up Nutrition Improvement”, for 2018, 1,032 volunteers were mobilized. As of today, 1196 volunteers have been trained on the following themes: “Exclusively breastfeeding and feeding of children from 6 to 24 months”.

Seminars are conducted by activists and field coordinators of the project in 9 pilot Ayil Aimaks of 7 oblasts.

During the training, interactive methods of conducting seminars are used, such as mini-lectures, brainstorming, small group work, discussion. Each participant of the seminar receives informational and educational material on nutrition, in particular, a leaflet on the pyramid of “High-grade nutrition”, a book of recipes, published in the framework of the project.

Volunteers are interested in these seminars, they are interested and grateful to the project for the information provided. They also assured that after the training they would try to convey to each household the idea to change the family’s eating habits, using the information received from activist-trainers, field coordinators, from a leaflet on the food pyramid, and a recipe book.

Volunteer of the village of Kurgak-Airyk, Jety-Oguz rayon, Issyk-Kul oblast (WUA Bel-Sovkhoz O), told the following story:

“My name is Nazgul. I`m a resident of the village of Kurgak-Airyk and a volunteer in my village under the project “Agricultural Productivity and Nutrition Improvement”. I participated in two workshops on exclusive breastfeeding, on feeding children from 6 to 24 months, on a varied diet of the family and on feeding the mothers during “1000 days”. Each workshop is very useful, especially after the workshop on a varied diet, I learned about the dangers of sugar, the whole family try to drink tea after meals, reduce the consumption of sugar, salt, fatty foods. Also, now I try to cook meat more often and cook soups, stewed dishes instead of fried ones. But it is hard, hard to immediately change the diet and the habits. I think, over time, the whole family will change our eating habits for the better. Thanks to the activists and to the project “Agricultural Productivity and Nutrition Improvement”.

We hope that thanks to the project there will be changes in behavior and eating habits of the population, which, unfortunately, have being settled for a long time. Let’s keep track of these changes together!