COMCEC

Malnutrition in the OIC Member

Countries: A Trap for Poverty

Another sentiment voiced in stakeholder interviews was the need to tackle malnutrition at

various stages of life. The cash transfer programme conditional on prenatal care mentioned

above speaks to this, and so does the school-feeding programme. The current national school

feeding programme covers 13.5 million students

.13

As mentioned above, early years are critical

for the development of the double burden of malnutrition, which justifies actions targeted at

early childhood, but this should not be done at the expense of a continuum of care throughout

the life-cycle.

3.3. Indonesia

Indonesia has the largest economy in Southeast Asia, with a GDP of US$ 1 trillion in 2012. It is a

G20 member, a stable democracy and the fourth most populated country in the world, with

251 million people, 50% of whom are below the age of 30. However, it faces persistent public

health problems, and the large population amplifies the numbers. The infant mortality rates

were 29 per 1,000, live births in 2013 (IFPRI, 2015). Food insecurity and undernutrition are

persistent challenges in Indonesia, particularly in the eastern provinces, where stunting is

alarmingly prevalent. Hunger and malnutrition reportedly have been halved two years before

the 2015 Millennium Development Goal deadline, but pockets of the country remain a serious

concern with stunting in certain districts reaching levels as high as 58%.

Despite recent global economic crises, Indonesia has witnessed steady economic growth in

recent years. The country rose to lower middle income status in 2009 and has experienced a

gradual reduction in overall poverty, from 17% in 2004 to 13% in early 2010. Indonesia's

economic growth has reached 5% in 2014 and 4.8% in 2015 (World Development Indicators,

2016). 15.5% of people live in multidimensional poverty (55th rank in the world), and 7% are

vulnerable to multidimensional poverty (Alkire et. Al 2016). Indonesia ranks at the 110th

place on the Human Development Index (UNDP 2015), which corresponds to a medium level of

development.

Figure 29: Malnutrition in Indonesia at a Glance

Source: IFLS (2014)

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