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UNICEF Supports Nutrition Education Programs in the Syrian Arab Republic
UNICEF addresses malnutrition in children in the drought stricken north-east region of Syrian Arab Republic. Shotlist: Script: You're watching UNICEF television. It might seem like little Abdul Kader has a healthy appetite but what he's actually eating is a UNICEF food supplement distributed to those at risk of malnutrition. At a slight 8 stone, like many kids in the North East of Syria, he is well below the average weight for his height. Syria still suffers abnormally high levels of malnutrition - in some areas as high as countries witnessing emergency level food shortages. Surprisingly, one of the greatest threats posed to Abdul and friends comes from the humble cup of tea. Lack of rainfall and flawed food distribution are two parts of the nutrition problem in Syria – but equal to both is a lack of education – which allows parents to fall back on ill-advised traditions like giving tea, and as a side-effect anaemia, to growing children. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Dr. Abdul Kareem Hammaadi, Health Center Manager, Hassakeh District: "I think those bad habits start from the first minute of giving birth, for example, the child will be provided with water mixed with sugar, and I just don't understand how they could use yogurt with tea next to it. It ruins the benefits of vitamins and iron, and this is an old tradition." UNICEF are using Syria's dedicated but embattled Public Health Teams as a conduit for better nutrition education, and the implementation of both long and short term solutions to Syria's malnutrition problem. In many ways this is pure UNICEF fieldwork. Operating alongside the local teams UNICEF experts assess the problem, and train Health Centre staff to measure child growth and how to treat serious mal-nutrition. At the base of this, though, is the constant task of equipping staff to educate parents about better nutrition. Elsewhere Syria is making considerable leaps towards fulfilling those all important Millennium Development Goals. But areas like the North East are being left behind. As such, malnutrition and poverty threatens to compound inequity – further dividing the country between rich and poor. SOUNDBITE (English) Sherazade Boualia, UNICEF Representative in Syria: "We do have an issue in Syria where the level of malnutrition is alarming to a certain degree, so we've decided to take action in collaboration with the ministry of health which has realised that it is important to address this issue from their side and also to engage all the parents of these children into responding to this particular situation." UNICEF's work to evolve attitudes and soften tradition in favour of better nutrition is a long, but essential process if the simple cup of tea is no longer going to pose a threat to t This is Rob Sixsmith reporting for UNICEf television. For more information, go to UNICEF.org Unite for children. Shotlist: 1. Wide Shot, child eats food supplement 2. Close up, food supplement 3. Wide shot, child eats food supplement 4. Various shots, malnourished child 5. Wide shot, dog barking 6. Wide shot, child on bike 7. Wide shot, young children 8. Wide shot, water pipes 9. Wide shot, man carries food 10. Wide shot, shepherds with sheep 11. Wide shot, old men sit on roadside 12. Wide shot, doctor weighs young kid 13. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Dr. Abdul Kareem Hammaadi, Health Center Manager, Hassakeh District "I think those bad habits start from the first minute of giving birth, for example, the child will be provided with water mixed with sugar, and I just don't understand how they could use yogurt with tea next to it. It ruins the benefits of vitamins and iron, and this is an old tradition." 14. Wide shot, health centre workers 15. Wide shot, mother with child 16. Wide shot, kid with doctors 17. Close up, kid on measuring device 18. Med shot, kids feet on measuring device 19. Wide shot, kid on weighing scales 20. Wide shot, UNICEF workers and health workers in workshop 21. Wide shot, nurses listen to lecture 22. Pan right, from advertisement to field 23. Wide shot, mother and children gathering water 24. Wide shot, girl riding donkey 25. SOUNDBITE (English) Sherazade Boualia, UNICEF Representative in Syria "We do have an issue in Syria where the level of malnutrition is alarming to a certain degree, so we've decided to take action in collaboration with the ministry of health which has realised that it is important to address this issue from their side and also to engage all the parents of these children into responding to this particular situation." 26. Med shot, Doctor with parent and child 27. Med shot, child falling asleep Due to problems with spam only SalfordOnline members can now leave comments. 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