PORTALJABAR, BANDUNG CITY - The Bandung City Government continues to strive to reduce stunting rates through various intervention programs. One of the real steps taken is through collaboration with PT Suryaprana Nutrisindo in providing additional nutrition for stunted children in Babakan Ciparay District.

Located in the Babakan Ciparay District Office Hall, PT Suryaprana Nutrisindo provided assistance in the form of vitamins and herbal supplements that are specially formulated to increase endurance, strengthen memory, support tooth growth, and maintain children's digestive health and appetite.

A total of 9 toddlers (under two years old) received direct assistance, as part of an intervention program for 50 stunted children recorded in the area.

Babakan Ciparay Sub-district Head, Suparjo said, handling stunting is a priority issue for the government. To overcome it, continuous monitoring of beneficiary children is needed so that the results are truly effective.

"We are grateful to be able to collaborate with PT Suryaprana Nutrisindo in efforts to accelerate the handling of stunting. After receiving additional nutrition, of course there must be control and supervision to ensure that children really get the benefits," said Suparjo.

In line with this, Rendiana Awangga, a member of the Bandung City DPRD, emphasized the importance of evaluation and monitoring in this program.

"We need to see the effectiveness of this program after one month of providing nutrition. Are the results in line with expectations? If significant, we can encourage similar collaborations in other regions," he said.

In addition to nutritional assistance, this program also involves health workers in data validation and mentoring stunted children in Babakan Ciparay.

Head of UPTD Caringin Health Center, Sri, said that handling stunting must be done comprehensively.

"Stunting is not only about malnutrition, but also anemia, parenting patterns, and sanitation that need to be improved from the start. This intervention will continue to be monitored through home visits and monitoring of child growth," Sri explained.

From the data collected, the stunting rate in Babakan Ciparay District has decreased from 7.72 percent in 2023 to 7.31 percent in 2024. The Bandung City Government is targeting this figure to continue to decrease to reach 6.2 percent, in accordance with the national target.

Representative of PT Suryaprana Nutrisindo, Bobi Kurniawan, confirmed that his party is committed to supporting public health programs.

"We are very happy to be able to contribute to efforts to accelerate the handling of stunting. The nutritional products we provide are expected to help improve children's health, especially during the crucial growth period," said Bobi.

He explained that the effectiveness of the vitamins and supplements given would be evaluated in the next one to three months, with close monitoring by health workers.

This program is a concrete step in accelerating the reduction of stunting rates in the city of Bandung.

With close collaboration between the government, private sector, and health workers, it is hoped that this intervention can have a positive impact on the growth and development of children in Babakan Ciparay and other areas. (Diskominfo Kota Bandung/rka)