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BURUNDI / MALNUTRITION
STORY: BURUNDI / MALNUTRITION
TRT:2.47
SOURCE: UNICEF
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / FRENCH / KIRUNDI / NATS
DATELINE: 2- 8 JUNE 2013, KARIMBU HILL, GASORE COMMUNE, GASHOHO HEALTH DISTRICT. MUYINGA PROVINCE, BURUNDI
1. Wide shot, Jacqueline with two children sorting beans
2. Wide shot, Jacqueline with two children sorting beans
3. Close up, child putting beans into basket
4. SOUNDBITE (Kirundi) Jacqueline Bangirinama, 30 years old:
“Now they are eating beans, but in august there will not be enough.”
5. Wide shot, community health workers conducting screening for acute malnutrition
6. Med shot, child receiving upper-mid arm measurement
7. Close up, child receiving upper-mid arm measurement
8. Wide shot, community health education
9. Close up, volunteer turning page on health education chart
10. Wide shot, Jacqueline attending health education class
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Chantel Inamahoro, Technical Director, Pathfinder International
“The main objective is to gain weight but also to change behavior slowly by getting the information in 12 days. “
12. Med shot, volunteer dishing up food at community health education class
13. Close up, volunteer dishing up food at community health education class
14. Close up, child being fed at community health education class
15. Wide shot, children receiving Plumpy Nut at health centre
16. Close up, child receiving plumpy nut at health centre
17. SOUNDBITE (English) Sophie Leonard, Chief of Health and Nutrition, UNICEF Burundi:
“Acute malnutrition is when there is really a shortage of food and you can see that the child is skinny and it’s very obvious. But the chronic malnutrition is a long-term problem so you cannot see the problem. Its children with a small height for their age and so their cognitive development is impaired.”
18. Wide shot, children in classroom
19. SOUNDBITE (French) Deo-Guide Rurema, Vice-Chief of Cabinet, Second Vice-Presidency, Republic of Burundi:
“The national level the data shows that it is costing 102 million USD each year. So you understand that should we have managed malnutrition. This amount could have been invested into other sectors that could be productive towards economic growth for sustainable development of our country.
20. Pan right, Burundi landscape
21. Wide shot, people walking up hill
22. Wide shot, women working in field
23. Close up, women working in field
24. Wide shot, women plating
26. Med shot, women planting
27. Close up, woman sorting beans
28. Close up, women’s face as she sorts beans
29. Close up, beans
30. Med shot, child being weighed
31. Close up, community health worker checking weight of child being weighed
32. SOUNDBITE (English) Johannes Wedenig, UNICEF Representative Burundi:
“The society is really realizing at the highest level that nutrition is a real challenge and that we have to act in a concerted. It makes no sense to work in parallel we wont have an impact. We all have to work together different ministries different agencies, churches community based organizations and in the end we have to converge on the family because that’s where the difference is.”
33. Close up, girl weaving a basket
36. SOUNDBITE (Kirundi) Noela, Community Health Volunteer
“There is difference regarding nutrition. Why? Because those came for the course can tell others the best practice and ask them to follow the example.”
37. Various shots, Jacqueline walking with children
The harvest season in Burundi offers some respite for 30 year old Jacqueline and her four hungry children.
For now, they may have just enough to fill their stomachs. But this won’t last long.
SOUNDBITE (Kirundi) Jacqueline Bangirinama, 30 years old
“Now they are eating beans, but in august there will not be enough.”
At a mass nutrition screening site such as this, Jacqueline’s children were found to be under-weight and small for their age. She was then referred to a community based 12 day health education and nutrition course. Here she learns about good nutrition and hygiene practices, and family planning from an elected community volunteer.
SOUNDBITE (English) Chantel Inamahoro, Technical Director, Pathfinder International
“The main objective is to gain weight but also to change behavior slowly by getting the information in 12 days.”
This is a community based program supported by the government, UNICEF and partners, which is part of efforts to deal with a nationwide silent emergency.
Nearly two thirds of Burundi’s children are chronically malnourished. The country also has the highest level of hunger of all 79 countries reported in the 2012 Global Hunger Index.
After years of conflict, the country has made strides in reducing acute malnutrition – but chronic malnutrition is a more complex condition to treat.
SOUNDBITE: (English) Sophie Leonard, Chief of Health and Nutrition, UNICEF Burundi:
“Acute malnutrition is when there is really a shortage of food and you can see that the child is skinny and it’s very obvious. But the chronic malnutrition is a long-term problem so you cannot see the problem. Its children with a small height for their age and so their cognitive development is impaired.”
And the social and economic cost of the country’s development is enormous.
SOUNDBITE: (French) Deo-Guide Rurema, Vice-Chief of Cabinet, Second Vice-Presidency, Republic of Burundi:
“The national level the data shows that it is costing 102 million USD each year. So you understand that should we have managed malnutrition. This amount could have been invested into other sectors that could be productive towards economic growth for sustainable development of our country.
Burundi faces massive socio-economic challenges including a rapidly growing population, most of whom live in rural areas and below the poverty line. There is limited land available which means families often cannot produce enough food and also don’t have information on how to combine available foods to ensure children get a well-balanced nutritious diet.
This is why malnutrition has now become a political priority and the government recently joined the Scale Up Nutrition initiative, a global force made of the private sector, different ministries, and UN agencies – with the aim of addressing the world’s nutritional needs.
And if the country is achieve its goal of reducing chronic malnutrition from 58 percent to 48 percent by 2016 it will need to tackle this from all sides.
SOUNDBITE (English) Johannes Wedenig, UNICEF Representative, Burundi:
“The society is really realizing at the highest level that nutrition is a real challenge and that we have to act in a concerted. It makes no sense to work in parallel we won’t have an impact. We all have to work together different ministries different agencies, churches community based organizations and in the end we have to converge on the family because that’s where the difference is.”
As Burundi tries to weave together all the elements needed on a large scale to deal with chronic malnutrition. Already, albeit small, the tide is beginning to turn.
SOUNDBITE (Kirundi) Noela, Community Health Volunteer:
“There is difference regarding nutrition. Why? Because those came for the course can tell others the best practice and ask them to follow the example.”
For Jacqueline, an end to day two of the course spells hope.
Mostly because she is now empowered with information and that she has some support in what is clearly a battle to keep children alive and healthy.
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