The World Health Organization’s country office in Timor Leste joined hands with the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports to hold a familiarization workshop on the Say No To 5S project on June 20. The 5S stand for Starvation, Soil-transmitted Helminthiasis, Skin diseases, Smoking and Sugary/Alcoholic Drinks and the project is targeted at improving the health and nutrition of over 300,000 school going children across the country.
Over 100 professionals from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), World Food Programme (WFP) and various municipalities across the country participated in the workshop. The idea of the workshop was to share details of the SN5S project with the staff working at the national and municipal level and introduce them to an upcoming baseline survey on school health to be commenced in July.
The SN5S project was launched in March 2022 and it will go on till 2025. A generous donation of US$ 7.8 million was made by KOICA to fund the project entirely.
Food security and malnutrition remains a challenge for Timor Leste, putting the younger generation at the risk of life-threatening diseases. Under the “Say No to 5S” project, WFP will introduce mineral- and vitamin-rich fortified rice as a part of the school meals programme, targeting 79,000 children in over 400 schools in Baucau, Bobonaro, and Manufahi. The project will also focus on rehabilitating kitchens and making hygienic cooking mandatory to ensure the quality and safety of school meals.
The WHO on the other hand will focus on providing a Primary Health Care (PHC) package to all primary and pre-secondary school students. The package will include distribution of deworming medication, measurement of body weight and height, screening, diagnosis and treatment for eye, hearing, oral, skin related conditions, nutritional and health information collection and promotion of physical activity, healthy diet and WASH by skilled health staff. The WHO targets reaching out to approximately 150,445 male students and 146,179 female students in all primary and pre-secondary in Timor Leste in the age group of 6-14 years, in addition to providing technical and logistical support, conducting capacity building activities and providing information management system of the school and students to develop, implement and monitor the PHC package at all levels.
An important aspect of the project includes advocating for the inclusion of health and nutrition related topics in the education curriculum, providing school nurse services for the 12 selected schools and developing a certification system to promote healthy school environments.