Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has called on the next administration to address stunting among Filipino children, warning of the long-term effects on their growth and development.

Gatchalian made the call as the outgoing Duterte administration seeks a $178.1-million loan from the World Bank to address Filipino children's stunted growth.

The said loan seeks to fund a proposed multi-sectoral project that would be led by the Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

With this, he said, the incoming administration should then ensure the effective implementation of Republic Act No. 11148 or the Kalusugan at Nutrisyon ng Mag-Nanay Act, also known as the First 1,000 Days Law.

The law, which Gatchalian co-authored, seeks to scale up nutrition interventions in the first 1,000 days of a child’s life.

Citing the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, the senator pointed out stunting affects the cognitive development of children which can be seen in their performance at school, pointing out that their recent studies show that nine (9) out of 10 Filipino children aged 10 cannot read or understand a simple story.

This translates to learning poverty of 90.5 percent, according to Gatchalian.

“Mahalagang tutukan natin ang kalusugan at nutrisyon ng mga bata mula sa panahong ipinagbubuntis sila, lalo na’t malaki ang epekto nito sa kanilang kakayahang matuto (It’s important to address the health and nutrition needs of children from the time they are still in their mother’s womb, especially since this has an effect on their capability to learn),” he said.

“Kailangang tiyakin natin na may sapat na partisipasyon at kakayahan ang ating mga komunidad, kabilang ang mga lokal na pamahalaan, upang pangalagaan ang kalusugan ng kabataang Pilipino (We also need to make sure that our local communities can participate, especially local governments, in our efforts to improve the health of Filipino youth),” said Gatchalian.

Based on a 2021 World Bank (WB) report entitled Undernutrition in the Philippines: Scale, Scope, and Opportunities for Nutrition Policy and Programming, around 30 percent of children in the Philippines under the age of five are stunted or being too short for one’s age.

Gatchalian noted that stunted growth accompanies severe irreversible physical and cognitive damage.

The WHO also pointed out that stunting is an irreversible outcome of inadequate nutrition and repeated bouts of infection during the first 1,000 days of a child’s life.