USAID nutrition programme a hit with farming households
MANY farmers are enjoying the benefits of the nutrition promotion programme being run by the US Agency for International Development (USAID). The project empowers farmers by teaching them to grow healthy vegetables.
Choeun Channoeng, one of the model farmers of the project, said USAID had given him new agricultural skills. He did not just learn to grow vegetables, but how to use fertilisers, prepare soil, rotate crops and make compost. He also has a good understanding of which vegetables are best for small children, and why they are important for their development.
“This project has helped my family and I a lot. Thanks to the use of natural compost, I have reduced the costs of growing produce, and the health of the children in my family is better because they have access to a healthy diet,” said Channoeng.
The Research Triangle Institute and Helen Keller International (Cambodia), funded by the USAID, are collaborating with several government institutions to promote child nutrition in Cambodia. The project, which serves 36 villages in Kampong Thom and Preah Vihear provinces, began in July 2020. It will conclude in July 2025.
The two organisations are implementing the programme in accordance with the government’s National Policy for the Protection and Development of Young Children, and have identified 3,600 households who currently benefit from the project.
Hun Vannary, senior technical director of the programme, said its main purpose is to provide support for the development of children from their mother’s womb until they are five years of age. Improved health and nutrition means improved development, physically, mentally and socially. The project also ensures that children with developmental delays and disabilities have access to appropriate care.
“We support about 3,600 farming households, most of them with children under 5 years old. The targeted families are now more focused than ever on providing a healthy diet to their children,” he added.
The project contributes to an increase in the efficiency of small-scale agricultural activities, including growing fruit and vegetables, and animal husbandry. It also teaches key messages on issues involving gender and financial education.
A Helen Keller International said that additional training was provided during December. Officials from the agriculture departments of the two provinces ran workshops on vegetable cultivation for 625 farmers, 541 of them women.
An additional 3-day training course, which covered the cultivation of crops and poultry farming techniques, was held for 33 model farmers. The farmers will return to their villages and share their newfound knowledge.