Recognizing the critical importance of nutrition during the First 1000 Days of life for a child’s health and development, the Zuellig Family Foundation and Nutritional International commissioned a survey to assess health and nutrition service delivery and outcomes in Puerto Princesa City, Tacurong City, and Tagum City to support their project on developing urban nutrition systems in the Philippines.

This baseline assessment report evaluates the existing governance measures related to the implementation of first 1,000 days (F1KD) services in Samar, Northern Samar, and Zamboanga del Norte, providing a detailed analysis of current nutrition and governance landscapes and offering strategic recommendations for improvement.

Building foundations for brighter futures: Zuellig Family Foundation (ZFF) at the Asia-Pacific Regional Network for Early Childhood (ARNEC) Conference 2025!

On the second day of ARNEC 2025, July 2, held in Manila, ZFF joined organizations across Asia to share inclusive and innovative approaches to early childhood development (ECD). During a panel on good practices hosted by the Tanoto Foundation, ZFF presented its 10-year journey in Basilan, where it worked with local leaders to improve services for children in their first 1,000 days (F1KD). Through its Bridging Leadership approach and Health Change Model, ZFF helped local governments strengthen systems for health, nutrition, responsive caregiving, and safety—despite the area’s long-standing security challenges.

ZFF’s experience in Basilan demonstrated the value of adaptive, locally-led governance in improving early childhood outcomes, especially in conflict-affected areas. While approaches may differ across countries, inclusive and sustainable ECD begins with collective action rooted in local realities.

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The Department of Science and Technology–Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI) held the 2025 National Nutrition Summit on June 5, 2025 at Dusit Thani Manila, unveiling the results of the 2023 Expanded National Nutrition Survey. Covering 36,703 households and 115,651 individuals nationwide, the survey provides updated, evidence-based insights into the country’s nutrition landscape. 

The findings serve as a critical resource for policymakers, program planners, and implementers, offering timely data to guide national and regional efforts. They highlight both the progress made and the persistent challenges in achieving the Philippines’ health and nutrition goals, reaffirming the urgency of sustained, evidence-based, and locally driven action.

The 2023 Expanded National Nutrition Survey reports that stunting among children under five has declined from 26.7% in 2021 to 23.6% in 2023. However, the burden remains significant, with one in five children still affected. Wasting, an indicator of acute malnutrition, continues to be a concern at 5.6% among children under five and 6.8% among those under two.

These figures point to persistent nutrition gaps, particularly during the critical First 1,000 Days (F1KD) of life. Only 50.4% of infants less than 6 months old are exclusively breastfed, and just 13.9% of children aged 6–23 months receive a minimum acceptable diet. Vitamin A deficiency remains a moderate public health concern, particularly among preschool children aged 6 months to 5 years. Additionally, only 26.6% of infants and preschoolers in this age group meet the recommended energy intake, highlighting significant nutritional gaps in early childhood.

The proportion of nutritionally-at-risk pregnant women has risen to 19.1%, signaling growing concern. While prenatal care coverage is improving, only 22.7% complete the WHO-recommended eight visits for comprehensive care. Alarmingly, just 13.7% of pregnant women meet their recommended daily energy intake.

In addition, three in every ten households experience moderate to severe food insecurity, often forced to reduce meal quality or skip meals altogether. Dietary diversity remains low, particularly among low-income families reliant on staple foods like rice, while food waste is rising, with households discarding an average of 130 grams daily, mostly rice, vegetables, and fish.

These findings call for urgent and coordinated actions. Local Government Units (LGUs) are in a strong position to improve community nutrition. Efforts should focus on the following areas: 

1. Prioritize the F1KD and sustain nutrition through the next 1,000 days (up to age five) by strengthening maternal and child nutrition programs, breastfeeding support, complementary feeding services, and timely micronutrient supplementation.
2. Improve access to quality maternal care by ensuring timely and consistent prenatal visits, comprehensive nutrition counseling, and access to essential supplements such as iron, folic acid, and calcium.
3. Invest in local food systems by promoting household food production, improving access to affordable nutritious food, and regulating local food environments. LGUs should integrate nutrition-sensitive agriculture and livelihood programs to enhance dietary diversity and food security, especially in vulnerable communities.
4. Promote data-driven, multisectoral governance by strengthening local nutrition committees, utilizing data for planning and accountability, and coordinating across health, agriculture, and social services to effectively sustain and scale nutrition interventions at the community level.

Meeting our national and global nutrition targets by 2030 demands empowered local leadership, evidence-based decision-making, and integrated, multisectoral action that begins with coordinated efforts at the community level today.

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The Zuellig Family Foundation (ZFF)’s Pook Malusog program helps communities support children’s nutrition. Learn more: https://zuelligfoundation.com/programs/nutrition/ 

Author: Rio Fe Del Valle, ZFF Nutrition Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Expert

Once marked by conflict and instability, the Province of Basilan is now making progress in improving health and nutrition outcomes for young children. 

Through strong local leadership and a decade of partnership with the Zuellig Family Foundation (ZFF), Basilan has strengthened systems for maternal and child health, food security, and early childhood care—especially during the critical First 1,000 Days (F1KD) of life.

ZFF shared this experience during the Asia-Pacific Regional Network for Early Childhood (ARNEC) Conference 2025. Speaking on a panel hosted by the Tanoto Foundation, ZFF presented how their work in Basilan has transformed early childhood outcomes through governance-focused approaches. Using the Foundation’s Bridging Leadership approach and Health Change Model, ZFF helped local leaders address gaps in health and nutrition despite the province’s complex and fragile context.

Related article:

• Municipal Leaders in Basilan Enhance Nutrition Governance through Zuellig Family Foundation Training

The Basilan Assistance Program (BAP), which built on earlier gains from the Provincial Nutrition Governance Program, trained governors and mayors to co-create local solutions, increase community participation, and strengthen service delivery. As part of the program, 255 barangays deployed community health workers to monitor and support pregnant women and malnourished children. Ten of the thirteen mayors underwent leadership and technical training further embedding nutrition priorities in local governance.

Between 2023 and 2024, stunting among children aged 0–2 dropped by 6.26 percentage points—from 16.74% to 10.48%. Wasting rates also declined, reflecting better capacity to prevent and manage acute malnutrition. Nutrition funding rose nearly fourfold, from 7.2 million pesos in 2021 to 27 million pesos in 2024. These improvements directly support brain development, emotional regulation, and school readiness—giving Basilan’s children a stronger start in life.

Basilan’s transformation shows that inclusive, equity-driven, and locally led programs can thrive even in post-conflict settings. “When we had peace, we now have the mental space to plan beyond the day after tomorrow,” said former Basilan Governor, now Vice Governor, Jim Hataman Salliman. 

“We can now be more strategic and focus our investment in health and nutrition, which was not prioritized before.”

The Zuellig Family Foundation (ZFF) continues to strengthen local nutrition governance through its flagship initiative, Pook Malusog, which empowers provincial leaders to lead multisectoral efforts in addressing malnutrition. 

With its long-standing belief that health and nutrition outcomes improve when local chief executives take ownership, ZFF works closely with governors, mayors, and frontline workers to ensure that leadership, planning, and systems are aligned to support families, especially during the First 1,000 Days (F1KD) of a child’s life.

ZFF shared its experiences and insights during the Webinar on a Weekday  (WoW!) session organized by the Philippine Stakeholders for Nutrition and Dietetics, Inc. (PSND) last July 11, 2025. The webinar, titled “Make or Break! How Will Your Newly Elected Officials Impact Nutrition in Your Community?” aimed to raise awareness on nutrition as a governance issue and encourage stronger local leadership in prioritizing nutrition.

Cecilio Adorna, Senior Fellow at Stratan LLC, opened the session by sharing national-level trends in child wasting and stunting. He pointed out that recent gains—such as the decline of stunting from 33.4% in 2015 to 23.6% in 2023—were driven by increased local government unit (LGU) engagement and policy support. “We should celebrate,” he said, “but also determine what was done right. The giant in the room is the LGU. The more we mobilize and support them, the more we can intensify progress.”

Dr. Joyce Ann Viar, ZFF’s Nutrition Director, stressed the governance gaps that continue to hinder progress: “Malnutrition remains a serious issue. Mataas pa rin po ang stunting and wasting sa bansa. One of the key reasons is the lack of coordination and accountability at the local level.” She shared how ZFF’s Provincial Nutrition Governance Program (PNGP) helps address these gaps by building the capacity of governors and their teams through coaching, training, and Deep Dive—a guided community immersion activity.

Austere Panadero, ZFF President and Executive Director, added, “What nutrition governance really requires is clear leadership. Kung hindi malinaw sa LGU, mahihirapan ang programa.” He urged continued investment in nutrition, citing that visible gains must be sustained and scaled by empowering more LGUs.

Through its Eight Critical Knobs of Nutrition Governance, ZFF promotes a comprehensive, system-wide approach to improving maternal and child nutrition. In Sarangani and Samar, stronger local leadership has led to improved nutrition policies, increased investments, better coordination across departments, and more empowered communities.

“We saw consistent improvement in nutrition outcomes in provinces that prioritized and strengthened these knobs,” said Dr. Viar. “Sana mapalago pa. More LGUs will be inspired or interested to enroll in the program.”

Malnutrition remains serious in the Philippines, where according to a 2018 survey, 15 percent of children 0-23 months were underweight, 25.5 percent were stunted, and 7 percent were wasted.

The 2018 Expanded National Nutrition Survey by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Department to Science and Technology also showed that iron-deficiency anemia, which can increase risks of infection and dying among pregnant and lactating women, as well as infants, affected 26 percent of pregnant women, 14 percent of lactating women, and 39 percent of 0-23 months old children.

Left unchecked, malnourished babies—especially the poor—could become poor learners in school, and have limited employment opportunities and low productivity. Undernourished girls, according to the Department of Health and National Nutrition Council, “are likely to be undernourished through adolescence up to adulthood, including the period of pregnancy.”

Through the enactment of the Republic Act 11148 or the First 1,000 Days Law, this cycle of producing malnourished Filipinos will hopefully be prevented. Signed into law late in 2018, it envisions to give the marginalized families easier access to health and nutrition programs in the first 1,000 days i.e. conception until two years of age.

With the intent of helping the country improve F1KD nutritional outcomes, the Nutrition International and Zuellig Family Foundation forged a partnership to improve capacities of mayors and other health leaders in delivering better nutrition services in the cities of Puerto Princesa headed by Mayor Lucilo Bayron, Tacurong led by former Mayor Lina Montilla and Mayor Angelo Montilla and Tagum led by Mayor Allan Rellon. These LGUs had undergone other health leadership and governance programs of the ZFF.

Launched last July 10, the Urban Nutrition Governance project will strengthen capacities of mayors and local governments to plan, finance, and govern integrated nutrition service delivery networks. The project will coach and mentor city and village governments on systems-approach for nutrition through enabling policies and participatory governance, multi-sectoral collaboration, and improvements in technical capacities of health and nutrition workers.

The project aims to reduce undernutrition in the F1KD and specifically targets adolescent mothers, indigenous women and children, urban poor women with young children, and transient families in the three cities.

During the launch, F1KD law co-author Senator Rissa Hontiveros said, “…partnerships with the private sector… and even with other nations like Canada, which has generously supported these worthwhile endeavors, form a cornerstone to achieving our goal of better nutrition and health outcomes for all Filipinos.”

Likewise, DOH Assistant Secretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, M.D. said of the nutrition governance project, “It will bring together the respective expertise, experience, and strengths in governance and program management of the government, Nutrition International, and the Zuellig Family Foundation-and leverage these for tangible results on improving health and nutrition outcomes.”