The town of Bulalacao has the highest incidence of malnutrition in Oriental Mindoro, Provincial Nutrition Action Officer Noreen Dacula said.

Dacula said the Provincial Nutrition Council (PNC) is now focusing on the southernmost town of Oriental Mindoro to address the problem.

She said the PNC is distributing vitameal among infants and children up to six years old in Bulalacao, which has a population of 30,188 based on 2007 census.

A recent National Nutrition Survey showed that malnutrition remains a pressing problem in the Mimaropa region as well as in Bicol and some areas in Visayas and Mindanao.

Mindoro and Palawan recently received over P272 million in aid in the government’s continuing drive to fight poverty in line with the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals.

Meanwhile, in terms of nutrition training Dacula said that Oriental Mindoro is ahead in the region.

The Infant and Young Child Feeding seminar was conducted for barangay nutrition scholars, municipal nutrition action officers, nurses and midwives from provincial down to barangay level, she said.

At the same time, the office of Governor Arnan Panaligan is distributing Vitamin A for children, and conducting deworming and supplemental feeding.