As Nutrition Month comes to a close, the Department of Education (DepEd) Abbott announced a partnership to help address child malnutrition in the country through the Nutrition and Growth Champions Program, an initiative designed to strengthen malnutrition screening and nutrition awareness in schools and communities.
Good nutrition helps children grow, learn, and thrive. Through the partnership, DepEd leverages its leadership and nationwide reach with Abbott’s nutrition science expertise to help schools identify nutrition risks and help more Filipino children reach their full potential.
This partnership is timely as child malnutrition remains a significant public health challenge in the Philippines. According to the Department of Science and Technology–Food and Nutrition Research Institute’s (DOST-FNRI) 2025 Updating Survey Results, one in four (25.3%) Filipino children under the age of five are stunted, the first increase recorded since 2015.
Stunting can have lasting consequences on a child’s physical growth, cognitive development and overall health, underscoring the need for sustained efforts to promote healthy growth and nutrition.
Against this backdrop, DepEd has prioritized child nutrition through nationwide school feeding and nutrition programs that support learner health and well-being.
The Nutrition and Growth Champions Program complements these efforts by providing educators and school health personnel with the knowledge, tools, and resources to monitor children’s growth, recognize potential nutrition concerns, and facilitate appropriate interventions.
“As we strengthen school feeding and nutrition programs across the country, partnerships like this help equip our schools with the tools and knowledge to identify nutrition concerns early and connect children to timely support,” said Education Secretary Sonny Angara.
“Addressing malnutrition has been a long-standing commitment for Abbott,” said Angelico Escobar, Abbott’s general manager of nutrition in the Philippines. “By combining Abbott’s nutrition science expertise with DepEd’s leadership, we can support earlier identification of children at risk of malnutrition and strengthen nutrition awareness in schools and communities, helping build a healthier future for Filipino children.”
The program will initially be implemented by DepEd and Abbott in 100 pilot schools across Metro Manila, with malnutrition screening expected to reach more than 70,000 children.
Over 130 educators and school health personnel will be trained as Growth Champions, equipping them with the skills, tools, and resources needed to conduct malnutrition screening and support nutrition education in schools. Participating schools will conduct twice-yearly growth screenings to support the early identification of nutrition risks and help connect children who may be at risk to appropriate support.
By embedding malnutrition screening and nutrition education into the school environment, the program aims to make nutrition awareness more accessible to children, families, and communities while strengthening the ability of schools to support healthier development.
The partnership also contributes to the Abbott Center for Malnutrition Solutions (ACMS), which convenes partners across communities, governments, health organizations, and the private sector to innovate for accessible and sustainable programs that identify, address and prevent malnutrition.
Since 2023, ACMS has trained more than 450 health workers and volunteers across 16 countries to screen for malnutrition and strengthen referral networks to primary care facilities, resulting in the screening of more than 118,000 children.
DepEd’s collaboration with Abbott builds on these efforts and reinforces the shared commitment to addressing malnutrition through sustainable, community-based solutions.
