Lahore: The Director-General(DG) Punjab Food Authority(PFA) Asim Javed and Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of LESCO Engineer Shahid Haider on Friday distributed lunchboxes at the inauguration of the School Nutrition Program at WAPDA Girls High School in Shalimar.
Speaking at the event,DG Food Authority said that 8,500 children in government schools across Lahore are receiving lunchboxes on a daily basis as part of the initiative.These lunchboxes which include fortified bread,milk and dry fruits (nuts),aim to ensure children receive nutritious meals throughout the school week.
‘Currently,we are providing nutritious lunchboxes for six days a week. This program was designed to combat malnutrition and stunting,’ said Asim Javed.
The DG also highlighted the troubling statistics,revealing that 40% of children are suffering from stunting,28% are underweight, and 30% are shorter than the average height for their age. He further emphasized that according to the National Nutrition Survey,25% of children suffer from zinc deficiency and 30% are lacking iron in their diets.
Food insecurity was a significant issue in Pakistan,according to Asim Javed,and he called for a ‘nutritional emergency’ to address these challenges.’We are expanding this program to ensure the health of young girls and community nutrition initiatives will be launched soon.Parents will be given full awareness about the importance of nutrition for their children,’ he added.
To date,over 10,000 children have been screened,with 700 children found to be severely affected by nutritional deficiencies.
The DG expressed concern that neglecting children’s nutrition could not only stunt their physical growth but also hinder their mental development.
CEO LESCO,engineer Shahid expressed his gratitude towards DG PFA Asim and his team for including them in the program,emphasizing that healthy eating would lead to healthier childhoods for the children involved.