COTABATO CITY(December 10) — The Bangsamoro government has set up a Nutrition Commission to confront a child stunting crisis that health officials and advocates say is rooted in years of underfunded local programs, weak governance, and unmet state obligations to protect children’s right to adequate nutrition.
The Bangsamoro Nutrition Commission (BNC), created under BTA Bill No. 55 and backed by a P15-million startup fund, is mandated to coordinate and monitor all nutrition and food security initiatives. Officials say the new body will finally centralize a system long plagued by fragmented and inconsistent delivery across BARMM.
BARMM’s 34.3% stunting rate remains among the highest in the country. In many conflict-affected and geographically isolated communities, families report limited access to health services, while several LGUs have no active nutrition committees or trained personnel — gaps the law now requires them to fix.
Health Minister Dr. Kadil Sinolinding Jr. said even one malnourished child “is one too many,” but advocates point out that hundreds of thousands remain vulnerable unless the region enforces accountability and ensures resources reach barangays where stunting has become normalized.
The Ministry of Health must issue the implementing rules within 90 days — a deadline that will reveal whether the new commission can move beyond paperwork to deliver on children’s rights long deferred.
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