Malnutrition in Timor-Leste : A Review of the Burden, Drivers, and Potential Response
This report presents the findings of nutrition assessment, gap analysis, and donor mapping exercise in the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (RDTL). Timor-Leste, though as a young and fragile state, has the preconditions for successful development...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2017
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/666231491492248496/Malnutrition-in-Timor-Leste-a-review-of-the-burden-drivers-and-potential-response http://hdl.handle.net/10986/26394 |
| Summary: | This report presents the findings of
nutrition assessment, gap analysis, and donor mapping
exercise in the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (RDTL).
Timor-Leste, though as a young and fragile state, has the
preconditions for successful development. However,
persistent high levels of malnutrition threaten to impede
efforts to reduce poverty, capitalize on gains in human and
skills development, increase productivity, and stimulate
economic growth. Though progress has been in other areas of
human development, malnutrition – particularly maternal and
Child undernutrition – is the single greatest contributor to
premature death and disability in the country and presents
an unparalleled development challenge. In 2013, over half
(50.2 percent) of all children under-five were stunted in
their physical and cognitive development. Timor-Leste has
the third highest stunting prevalence in the world, higher
than all other g7+ countries and a significant outlier
relative to its level of economic development. In 2013,
nearly one in three (63.2 percent) children (6-59 months)
and 2 in 5 women age 14-60 (39.5 percent) were anemic.
Although the country is no longer in an emergency situation,
the prevalence of wasting (11 percent) – an indicator of
acute malnutrition and a prominent risk factor for child
mortality – exceeds the WHO threshold for high public health
significance, with emergency levels of wasting experienced
in Covalima and Oecusse districts. Overweight prevalence is
low relative to global averages, but has risen more than
five-fold among adult women over the past decade. Though
Timor-Leste does not yet suffer from the double burden of
malnutrition, it will soon emerge if the problem continues unaddressed. |
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