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Peru Facilitates Health and Nutrition Workshops and Empowers Community Members in 2014

February 3, 2015

In 2014, The Hunger Project-Peru, in partnership with Chirapaq, ignited health and lifestyle changes throughout the country. Women and men were trained as Health and Nutrition Promoters and Integrated Development Promoters, mothers learned about the essential nutrients needed during their children’s first 1,000 days of life, and community members collaborated on a community mapping project in order to establish rules for land management and conservation.

 

2014 Highlights:

Health and Nutrition

The Hunger Project-Peru and Chirapaq held workshops on knowledge, attitudes, and practices for Quechua and Shawi community members, as well as trained community members to be Health and Nutrition Promoters. As a result of these workshops, families are developing strategies for basic home improvements that will promote better hygiene and healthier lifestyles in the home.

Specialized workshops were also held as part of the “1,000 Days nutrition strategy.” During these workshops participating mothers and families learned about the quantity and quality of meals children should be eating during their first two years of life.

In addition, The Hunger Project-Peru and Chirapaq evaluated the nutritional status of 34 children in the Shawi community and 50 children in the Quechua community. These evaluations were performed in partnership with health networks and centers in Laramate and Balsapuerto. Data gathered from these assessments was used to develop training plans that aim to strengthen mothers’ understanding of nutritional values, adequate food consumption and hygiene.

 

Community Mobilization

The Hunger Project-Peru and Chirapaq collaborated with 50 men and women from the Quechua community and 158 men and women from the Shawi community in an effort to establish rules for land management and conservation. Together they created a community mapping project that documented farmland, forest areas, livestock farming, governance rules, cultural heritage practices, biodiversity and ancestral food knowledge. The lessons they learned from this community mapping project will be used moving forward to create a more sustainable, inclusively managed community.

The Hunger Project-Peru and Chirapaq continued to strengthen partnerships with indigenous organizations such as the Organization of Indigenous Women of Laramate (OMIL) and the Regional Organization of Development of Indigenous Communities of the Alto Amazonas (ORDEPIAA). These partnerships aid in the development of income-generating activities and the formation of Health and Nutrition Promoters.

The Hunger Project-Peru and Chirapaq actively participated in the Cooperative Roundtable for the development of the district in Laramate. During this year’s revision of the development plan, The Hunger Project-Peru and Chirapaq advocated for a gender-mainstreamed, rights-based approach. They also stressed the importance of projects aimed at the reduction of childhood malnutrition, basic rural sanitation, and income-generating projects.

 

Women’s Empowerment

Women have been participating in local organic fairs as a market outlet for family garden grown crops. Family gardens in both Quechua and Shawi communities are managed using traditional, ancestral knowledge in order to increase yields and encourage more diverse production of local fruits and vegetables. These gardens have created a new income-generating opportunity for women who had not previously participated in the local economy, while promoting local products and nutritional food.

In collaboration with The Hunger Project-Peru and Chirapaq, young women representatives of Organization of Indigenous Women of Laramate (OMIL) and the Regional Organization of Development of Indigenous Communities of the Alto Amazonas (ORDEPIAA) have been trained as Integrated Development Promoters, with the objective of achieving sustainability in nutrition, health and climate change knowledge within their communities.

 

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