LAHORE  - As Pakistan is one of the few countries where half of the world’s malnourished children are found the Nestlé has launched its Healthy Kids (NHK) programme, with a view to raise nutrition and health knowledge among schoolchildren.
Nestlé, as part of the Nestle Healthy Kids (NHK) programme, has also signed MoUs with several educational institutions, including the Trust for Education and Development of Deserving Students (TEDDS) and Care Foundation to promote healthy activities among the children. Dr. Sohail, coordinator at a Trust School, observed that stunting and malnutrition is widely prevalent in Pakistan, caused by a combination of dietary deficiencies and poor child health and nutrition.
“We, at TEDDS Schools, are really excited to partner with NHK. Nutrition knowledge is essential if we are to change the way we think about health.” Dr. Sohail added that as part of the NHK programme, all TEDDS Schools have featured special NHK rooms, where kids are learning more about nutrition-rich diet and healthier lifestyles. Teachers and mothers have also been trained as a part of this initiative. A trainer at Care Foundation High School No 1 in Sheikhupura, stated that Nestlé Healthy Kids (NHK) programme is aimed at enhancing school children’s knowledge about nutrition and health and promote physical activity. It was started in Pakistan in 2010 and 2500 students were trained in two schools under the pilot project. He said that in 2013-14 around 20,000 students were trained in 24 schools, involving 30 teachers. “We conduct overall 16 classes in one year for students of class one to 10.”  Ms. Naila, a teacher at Care Foundation School in Sheikhupura, said that the programme educates school students on good food habits, nutritional deficiencies, food related disorders, food hygiene, and techniques to safeguard the nutritional value of food during preparation.
Sikandar Abbas, a student of Care Foundation School, said that nutrition training class seeks to inculcate healthy habits among us.  The programme has reached 50,000 children in suburban and urban areas of the country and trained 120 teachers on nutrition through partnership with CARE Foundation and other NGOs, says Waqar Ahmad, Head of Corporate Affairs for Nestlé Pakistan and Afghanistan.
He says, “We will also be engaging with other education institutions in Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh in order to further expand the reach of the programme.”  “In Pakistan, the company wants to double the number of kids reached in 2015. Nestlé Pakistan has already signed an MoU with Kiran Foundation in Karachi and is in talks with partners in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” said Waqar Ahmad. Globally, Nestlé is looking to expand the NHK Programme to 80 countries by the end of 2015.
Mr. Waqar said that Nestlé believes the programme has been a success because expert teams are hired to develop educational materials and curriculum that is tailored to the specific needs of local communities. By the end of 2014, the programme was implemented in 73 countries with the help of nearly 300 partners, including schools, governments and NGOs. As many as 7.6 million children’s basic knowledge of the importance of nutrition and physical activity was increased in 2014 alone.