Rangamati lags behind in ensuring nutrition despite abundance of food: Experts

Of all the areas in the Chattogram Hill Tracts (CHT), Rangamati is lagging behind the most in meeting residents' nutritional demands despite having an abundance of nutritious food, experts and health advocates said on Thursday.

Speaking at a roundtable programme in Rangamati, they said the entire Chattogram Hill Tracts region has been failing in meeting the nutritional needs of the region's inhabitants.

Poverty, lack of information and awareness, and poor coordination of authorities are the main reasons driving the health crisis into a slide, the speakers pointed out at the event, "Advancing Nutrition Commitments for Chattogram Hill Tracts". The event was organised by the District Nutrition Coordination Committee, Rangamati, and supported by the Leadership to Ensure Adequate Nutrition (LEAN) project.

"The Chattogram Hill Tracts region is lagging behind in many indicators of meeting nutritional needs. Among them, the situation in Rangamati is the worst," Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, deputy commissioner of Rangamati, said while chairing the programme.

Mizanur Rahman, who is also president of the District Nutrition Coordination Committee, said there is a lack of coordination between various departments concerned in this regard.

"If nutritional needs are not met, it is not possible to implement a developed and prosperous Bangladesh by 2041 [as envisioned by the government]," he said.

Photo: Mumit M/TBS

People suffering from malnutrition are at risk of being underweight and prey to stunted growth and wasting, speakers said.

According to Bangladesh Nutrition Profile (nutritionprofile.gov.bd), the prevalence of stunting is 36% in Rangamati, 27% in Chattogram division, and 28% nationally, according to data provided by LEAN.

On the other hand, prevalence of the underweight factor is 18% in Rangamati, 23% in Chattogram division and 23% nationally, which also showed progress toward the national prevalence rate of underweight (23%).

Besides, Rangamati also has a 9% wasting rate, which is 10% in Chattogram division and at the national level, indicating a good prevalence rate in terms of nutrition indicators.

But the district is far from reaching the global standard in malnutrition prevalence rate — wasting below 5%, stunting below 20%, underweight below 10%.

According to an FAO report in 2019, more than 54% or 9.5 million preschool-aged children in Bangladesh suffer from stunted growth, 56% are underweight and more than 17% suffer from wasting.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Bipash Khisha, civil surgeon, Rangamati, said, "Poverty or scarcity alone does not cause malnutrition. The problem is mainly a lack of knowledge and motivation. Marginal people of the hills do not have adequate knowledge about the availability of nutritious food in the vicinity."

Barun Kumar Dutta, livestock officer, Rangamati, said in terms of abundance of nutritious food, the three hill districts –Bandarban, Rangamati, and Khagrachari– top the list in the country. But, at the same time, these districts have acute malnutrition.

"We have failed to take concerted action to overcome this problem," he said.

Sheikh Md Arshad Bin Shahid, senior upazila fisheries officer, Sadar, Rangamati, spoke in a similar vein. 

"Rangamati produces more fish than the district's demand from Kaptai Lake," he said, adding that a big portion of the produce is sold to other districts, eventually creating a shortfall in supply for people living in Rangamati.

"On the other hand, even though dry fish has four times more nutrients, we are failing to produce it safely," he added.

Of some 7.04 lakh residents of Rangamati, some 5.08 lakh live in rural areas, according to government data. Besides, the district's improved drinking water use rate stands at 59%, improved sanitation at 51%, and water and soap availability at 48%, whereas in Chattogram division the rates are 97%, 84% and 69% respectively, compared to 99%, 64% and 75% at the national level.

Dr Nusrat Jahan, deputy director of the Bangladesh National Nutrition Council, said apart from financial incapacity, people's habits also cause malnutrition as many avoid eating nutritious foods like mountain pulses.

Meanwhile, Raja Devasish Roy, chief of Chakma Circle, said, "If we do not take into account the remoteness of the hill people and their culture, many programmes taken to deal with nutritional deficiencies may not be able to fulfil targets. 

Dr Nuyan Khisa, upazila health and family planning officer, Naniarchar, Rangamati, said, "Malnutrition cannot be eradicated by raising awareness alone when the poverty rate in hill districts is 60-70%."

She suggested launching special schemes for people in remote hill towns in order to empower them economically.

Meanwhile, referring to a research paper on investing in nutrition published in the medical journal The Lancet, Obaidur Rashid, technical coordinator of The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), said for every $1 invested in nutrition, $16 is returned to the local economy.

"If an expectant mother is adequately fed and cared for, a healthy baby will be born, who will have opportunities to do well in everything, including sports, studies, work. Through this they will contribute to the national GDP," he added.

All the key stakeholders of Chattogram hIll tracts also expressed their commitment to achieving sustainable nutrition outcome as per national commitment.                                                                                      

Among others, Aungsei Pru Chowdhury, chaiman of Rangamati Hill District Council; Prof Dr Kanchan Chakma, vice chancellor of Rangamati Science and Technology University, and Jannat Noor, project director of LEAN also spoke on the occasion.

The European Union sponsored the event, while The Business Standard was its media partner.

Under the leadership of DNCC, LEAN along with all consortium partners has been facilitating a nutrition governance process, particularly to improve maternal and child nutrition in the Chattogram hill tracts since 2018 with funding support from the European Union.

The consortium partners of LEAN are United Purpose, Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), HELVETAS Swiss Intercoorporation (HSI), Caritas Bangladesh (CB), Integrated Development Foundation (IDF), and Jum Foundation (JF).