Hilda: Launching major health initiative

At Nitijela Monday, after the formal opening ceremony, from left: Majuro Iroijlaplap Lein Zedkeia, First Gentleman Tommy Kijiner, Jr. and President Hilda Heine joined the Aur singing group. Photo: Kelly Lorennij.
At Nitijela Monday, after the formal opening ceremony, from left: Majuro Iroijlaplap Lein Zedkeia, First Gentleman Tommy Kijiner, Jr. and President Hilda Heine joined the Aur singing group. Photo: Kelly Lorennij.

A 10-year, $20 million project to improve the health of young children in the RMI is to be launched in January with World Bank funding, President Hilda Heine announced in her state of the nation speech Monday at Nitijela.

The project has been under discussion since late last year when a survey showed high rates of malnutrition that is leading to stunted growth in over 30 percent of young children in Marshall Islands.

Heine said this new initiative will specifically address the nutrition needs of children in the under-five age group. She described the World Bank- and UNICEF-supported project as a first for the RMI.

“A multi-phased program in early childhood development and nutrition spanning a 10-year period starting in 2019 is proposed with the funding support of $12 million in the first phase (2019-2024) and potentially $8 million or more in the second phase (2025- 2029),” states the report of a World Bank visit to RMI last month to finalize plans for the project.

The target group is children between the age 0-5 and pregnant women.

Read more about this in the August 10, 2018 edition of the Marshall Islands Journal.