Then and Now: The Children of Saravane Province - meet Bak

Tahuak village, Ta Oi district, Saravane province.
In 2012, Bak was identified as severely undernourished (indicated by the arm band measurement in the ‘red’). He was treated with supplementary foods and his mother counseled on good feeding practices for young children as part of a Government programme supported by UNICEF with funding from the European Union.  Examined again earlier this year by Mr. Keomany, a Tahuak Health Centre staff member (also pictured here) he proudly proclaims Bak as “in the green”, or no longer undernourished.

Then and Now: The Children of Saravane Province - meet Set

Tahuak village, Ta Oi district, Saravane province. 

In 2012, Set was just 1 year old and severely undernourished. This year, Set turns 4 and the nutrition screenings show her “in the green” – or adequately nourished for her age. Her mother credits the supplementary foods provided to her and a better diet following counseling by the local health workers under a Government programme supported by UNICEF with funding from the European Union. “We don’t have money to go buy different foods for our children at the market. But after I learned Set was malnourished I started making a plan to feed her better,” Set’s mother explains. “Pumpkins, mangoes, cucumbers … whatever we can pick locally or grow in our garden. I also feed her eggs now.”

Read story number 2 and meet Bak...