As part of the revitalization of the Barangay Integrated Development Approach for Nutrition Improvement (BIDANI) Program in the Isabela State University (ISU), a week-long training of trainers (ToT) was conducted from 6-10 August 2018.
The ToT capacitated faculty and staff members of ISU-Echague campus, officials of the municipal government of Echague, and the barangay council, barangay nutrition scholars, barangay health workers, and other stakeholders from Barangay Salvacion, Echague, Isabela.
According to Dr. William Medrano, Vice President for Research, Development, Extension, and Training of ISU, reviving BIDANI will greatly help in solving the problem of malnutrition. “This is the need of the hour, considering that malnutrition in the country is alarming and [continues] to worsen. If the government and all of us will not do something about it, wala namang makakatulong sa atin kundi tayo,” he said.
Dr. Pedrita Medrano, the University Director for Extension and Training of ISU, also reiterated BIDANI’s effectiveness, saying “BIDANI is one of the proven development [strategies], tool na nakakatulong sa pagre-reduce ng ating malnutrition rate… we embrace the idea that we need, really, to revive and strengthen BIDANI as a program.”
ISU-Echague Campus Executive Officer Dr. William Eustaquio, meanwhile, said that he hopes the impact of the program would become visible in Barangay Salvacion, and expressed his hopes for a productive partnership. “I hope, sa tulong ng UPLB na kasama namin [ISU] na institution at LGU [local government unit], sana maganda ang samahan natin,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr. Jesus Babaran, who represented Mayor Francis Faustino “Kiko” Dy, assured that the municipal government of Echague will work together with ISU and Barangay Salvacion to ensure the program’s success. He said that malnutrition “needs multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral integrated approaches in order to minimize, if not solve the problem” and “a collaborative approach … to get to the root causes of problems and identify appropriate and lasting solutions.”
From Core Team to LGU
On the first day of training, the BIDANI as a program and a strategy, innovative strategies, and corporate identity was discussed. The ISU BIDANI Core Team was also established.
The second and third days were dedicated to the Echague LGU. Aside from the BIDANI program and strategies, the collection of data through the Barangay Management Information System (BMIS), development planning, and prioritization of problems were also tackled. They were also capacitated in forming the Municipal BIDANI Ad Hoc Committee, which shall oversee the implementation of the BIDANI program on the part of the LGU.
The final two days were attended by the barangay council, barangay nutrition scholars (BNS), barangay health workers (BHWs), and other stakeholders from Barangay Salvacion, which was selected by the ISU BIDANI Core Team as their pilot barangay. As part of social mobilization, they were oriented about the BIDANI as a strategy and the Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition (PPAN) 2017-2022.
In terms of nutritional and situational analysis, discussed to them were data gathering via BMIS, and prioritization of problems. The implementation of nutrition interventions via the Participative Nutrition Enhancement Approach (PNEA) was also discussed.
Officials of Barangay Salvacion were also trained in the preparation of their sectoral action plan, which is a major part of the Barangay Integrated Development Plan (BIDP), as part of the Barangay Integrated Development Approach (BIDA). Barangay Salvacion’s Program Planning and Implementing Committee (PPIC), an expanded form of the Barangay Development Council (BDC), was also formed during the training. It was also agreed upon that the PPIC shall compose the Barangay Nutrition Council (BNC) of Barangay Salvacion.
– Guien Eidrefson Garma