PHNOM PENH: May 25, 2023, Plan International Cambodia, Development Partners, NGOs,
and Sub-working group for WASH and Nutrition/Council for Agricultural and Rural
Development (CARD) launched the “National Guiding Principles for Nutrition-sensitive WASH Interventions and Case Study Report” at Phnom Penh Hotel. The event was presided over by H.E. Dr. Yim Chhay Ly, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Council for Agriculture and Rural Development. Special guests included representatives from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Rural Development, Ministry of Women Affairs, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, National Committee for Decentralized and Deconcentration (NCDD)/Ministry of Interior, Provincial Working Group for Coordinating Food Security and Nutrition across the country, relevant ministries, UN agencies, INGOs and civil society organizations.
Mrs. Gwynneth Wong, Country Director of Plan International Cambodia, said that the Royal Government of Cambodia has significantly improved nutrition and WASH for Cambodians. As a result, the stunting rate in children under five years old has decreased from 32% in 2014 to 22% in 2022. Cambodia has also made strong progress in reducing household open defecation in rural areas from 98% in 2000 to only 14 % in 2022. And only 15% of rural households have no access to basic drinking water during the dry season based on the latest Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey 2021-2022.
Nutrition-sensitive WASH is a multi-sectoral approach that aims to contribute improve child
nutrition and reducing stunting and wasting in children under five years old. Malnutrition is
caused by many factors including food insecurity in the household, limited access to clean
water, and lack of household sanitation and hygiene. Therefore, lack of WASH is considered a main root cause of children’s diarrhea and malnutrition which can lead to childhood deaths in Cambodia and around the world.
The links between WASH and nutrition are increasingly hard to ignore. There is a growing
recognition of the importance of promoting nutrition through integration within interventions. Specifically, those that are responsive to the underlying and basic causes of nutritional in individuals, households, and society. The National Guiding Principles for Nutrition-sensitive WASH Interventions were developed to provide technical support and guide relevant stakeholders to improve the nutrition status in Cambodia. The document outlines five guiding principles:
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Identify target areas for integration and/or convergence of WASH and Nutrition Interventions. The Nutrition-sensitive WASH interventions must consider community needs, coverage, infrastructure equity, and malnutrition prevalence rate.
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Identify service availability and create demand for equal access to WASH and Nutrition services. During plan development, implementers must assess WASH coverage and identify service providers.
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Sustainable behavior changes to impact both WASH and Nutrition, with a focus on gender and youth.
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Strengthen government accountability and promote private sector participation at the national and sub-national levels, including the capacity development of concerned ministries, sub-national levels, and commune council members.
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Focus on children, especially children, in the first 1000 days of life. All interventions should focus on and integrate children into activities to accelerate interventions to promote child nutrition from a very early age to 5 years old.
Case studies were also developed to share the experiences of current nutrition and WASH
interventions led by the community including lessons learned from the implementation of
Healthy Start Program, one of Plan International Cambodia’s four core programs, and GIZ- MUSEFO, HKI in Kampong Thom Province. This will be used to inform concerned
stakeholders on future interventions to address child stunting through nutrition-sensitive
WASH interventions.
Launching the “National Guiding Principles for Nutrition-sensitive WASH Interventions and Case Studies Report” is a significant step forward in the fight against all forms of malnutrition in Cambodia. These principles provide a roadmap for stakeholders to work together to improve nutrition for all Cambodians.
H.E. Dr. Yim Chhay Ly, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Council for Agriculture
and Rural Development recommended, “The sub-working group for WASH and Nutrition shall continue sharing the knowledge and practical experiences on the implementation of nutrition-sensitive WASH interventions to all relevant stakeholders at the national and sub-national levels and the relevant partners shall work with CARD, the Technical Working Group on food security and nutrition and the Provincial Working Group for coordinating food security and nutrition to develop the implementation mechanisms at the community to align water supply and sanitation and nutrition sectors to contribute improving all forms of malnutrition”.
Photo by: Plan International Cambodia
