17.7% of Indonesian Children Still Suffer from Malnutrition

Based on the results of the 2018 Basic Health Research (Riskesdas) by the Ministry of Health, 17.7% of children under five years old (toddlers) still suffer from malnutrition. This figure comprises 3.9% of toddlers experiencing severe malnutrition and 13.8% suffering from moderate malnutrition.

Compared to the results of the 2013 Riskesdas, the percentage of infants experiencing malnutrition has decreased, as shown in the graph below. Meanwhile, the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) 2019 targets a reduction in the percentage of infants with malnutrition problems to 17%. The prevalence of stunting (height below standard for age) among toddlers was 30.8%, down from 37.2% in the 2013 Riskesdas.

For information, the first 1,000 days of a child's life (from the fetal stage to the age of two) is a golden age for their growth and development. Unfortunately, many children who should be the hope of the Indonesian nation still experience malnutrition (29.9%) in early childhood. Therefore, the government has allocated Rp 123.1 trillion in the 2019 State Budget (APBN) to improve access to and quality of health services and strengthen stunting mitigation efforts.