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Directors Bio 3471 2756

AZUCENA MILANA-DAYANGHIRANG, MD, MCH, CESO III
ASSISTANT SECRETARY and EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
NATIONAL NUTRITION COUNCIL

Dr. Azucena M. Dayanghirang is an experienced public health leader. For the past 29 years, she has been a facilitator and a trainer for various health programs particularly on Maternal Child Health and Nutrition. She has served the people of Davao as City Nutrition Action Officer from 1991-1995; Chief of the Technical Services Division and Medical Officer VI of Davao City Health Office from 1996 to 2005; as well as the Provincial Health Officer II and Provincial Nutrition Action Officer of Davao del Sur from 2008 to 2016.

During her stint in the local government, she led the City Nutrition Committee in the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of health and nutrition programs. She initiated the “Fresh Milk Supplemental Feeding Program,” which led to the reduction of protein-energy malnutrition among 0-6-year-old children. She also successfully lobbied for the regularization of 32 Nutritionist-Dietitians deployed in the 16 Districts of Davao City in 1996.

In 2016, she was elected as the National President of the Nutrition Action Officers' Association of the Philippines (NAOPA), Inc. Shortly after, she was appointed as Deputy Executive Director of the National Nutrition Council (NNC), an attached agency of the Department of Health, Philippines. In August 2019, Dr. Dayanghirang was appointed as the Executive Director of the NNC. Currently, she is designated as the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Philippines Government Focal Point and most recently, appointed as a member of the Executive Committee of the Global Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement representing Asia and Papua New Guinea.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed the appointment of Dr. Dayanghirang to Career Executive Service Officer (CESO) Rank III effective 3 December 2020. Recently, she was upgraded to Executive Director IV with the rank of Assistant Secretary as approved by President Duterte through Executive Secretary Salvador C. Medialdea on 21 July 2021.

Harnessing the engagement of the private sector for nutrition

Details
Category: Directors Corner

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NNC Assistant Secretary and Executive Director IV Dr. Azucena M. Dayanghirang was invited by former Senator and DILG Secretary Joey Lina to present NNC’s initiatives during the lunch meeting held at The Manila Hotel Red Jade Restaurant last 6 October 2022. The said meeting was also attended by former Chief Justice Reynato Puno, DSWD Secretary Erwin Tulfo, DILG Undersecretary Margarita Gutierrez, and private sector representatives from the Rotary District of 3830, Kiwanis, Lions, and Junior Chamber International (JCI). The main purpose of the meeting was to discuss the current hunger and malnutrition situation of the country and come up with ways to address it.

A/Sec. Dayanghirang presented a brief overview of the prevailing hunger and malnutrition situation in our country and the current initiatives of NNC. A/Sec Dayanghirang highlighted that the country suffers from triple burden of malnutrition among under-five children based on the 2018-2019 results of the Expanded National Nutrition Survey of the DOST-FNRI. The country’s problem on malnutrition is heavily linked with hunger where 3.1 million Filipino families experienced involuntary hunger or being hungry and not having anything to eat at least once in the past three months based on the National Social Weather Station Survey of April 2022.

With these problems at hand, A/Sec. Dayanghirang laid down the country’s initiative on the formulation of the Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition (PPAN) as the blueprint of actions for nutrition improvement. The PPAN promotes a multisectoral approach from all key stakeholders from the government, civil society, academic institutions, development partners, and the private sector. A/Sec. Dayanghirang concluded her presentation by furthering the call for a coordinated and multisectoral approach in addressing the multifactorial problem of malnutrition.

The presentation was followed by a rich discussion and a fruitful exchange of views among the attendees on the innovative and aggressive interventions that must be urgently taken. All the private sector partners present committed to join forces with the NNC and to scale up their commitment and active involvement in advocating for nutrition especially in the crucial period of the First 1000 Days of Life. Further meetings and a national summit will be done to seal their commitments.

 

Nutrition Officer II - Enah Eunice R. Calanog
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