Bernice Adifor Addo receiving her prize from Nana Esi Inkoom, while other officials from Nestlé look on
Mothers at the La Dadekotopon Municipal Assembly last Saturday had the rare opportunity of being educated by Nestlé Nido on good nutrition for their children.
The programme headlined, ‘Nestlé Nido Nutrition Education Campaign’, provided mothers and caregivers nutritional information for the optimal growth of their children.
Held at the Ako Adjei Park for pupils and their parents from four selected public schools in the vicinity, the programme which is the 24th to be held in the country, used short educative drama, interactive games and practical lessons to help the mothers learn the combination of the different kinds of foods for good nutrition.
Freda Y. Duplan, managing director, Nestlé, in a statement read on behalf by Aaron Fenu, corporate communication manager, Nestlé, said the programme which has been running in selected schools nationwide, in collaboration with the Ghana Education Service (GES), forms the core of Nestlé Nido’s nutrition, health and wellness agenda.
“Education plays an important role in promoting good nutrition and healthy lifestyle that contribute to the development of families especially children,” she said.
Madam Duplan said mothers are often those who care for children, thus, it was important that they were engaged on critical topics such as the importance of breakfast and the health benefits of the right amount of micronutrient like iron, calcium and vitamins for their children.
Nana Esi Inkoom, National School Health Education programme manager, GES, said feeding children with the right combination of food containing nutrients such as iron, vitamins and calcium were essential for their total development.
She urged the mothers not to think about the affordability of such foods, but rather urged them to seek the welfare of their children by giving them a balanced diet containing vitamins, protein and carbohydrate.
The mothers at the end of the event competed for an ultimate prize of GH¢500 scholarship package for their children.
At the end of the contest which tested the mothers’ understanding of the information provided, Madam Addo and her son, Leon Addo, of the Kaajano Primary School, won the ultimate prize, while the other contestants were given consolation prizes from Nestlé Nido.
The prize package was to provide financial support for the next academic term or school reopening, usually in September.
Samuel Agyei Yeboah, category development manager, Nido, said since 2015 the ‘Nestlé Nido Nutrition Education Campaign’ has reached 11,338 mothers in the Greater Accra, Northern, Western, Ashanti, Volta, Central, Brong Ahafo and Eastern regions.
“In the Central and West Africa region, Nestlé provided its consumers with 58 billion daily servings of micronutrient- fortified foods and beverages in 2015,” he said.
Mr Yeboah said so far, the company has spent GH¢ 12, 000 in the sponsorship packages for the children across the country.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri