Free food parcels for pregnant, nursing mothers

Some 6,000 pregnant and nursing women, and over 8,000 children aged up to 24 months will receive food parcels in a project on health and social assistance service, from an additional grant offered by the World Bank, as a response to the world food crisis. UNICEF will manage the funds. An accord with the Health Ministry was inked Wednesday, February 5, Info-Prim Neo reports. According to health minister Larisa Catrinici, the 2-million-dollar grant will be used to buy food for pregnant women, for nursing mother with babies aged up to 6 months and for children aged from 6 to 24 months. The energy value of a parcel will be 2,500 calories a day per person. “The women and children to receive the aid are identified locally by a team consisting from a family doctor, a social assistant and a representative of the local mayor office. The first distribution of parcels is planned for later February. The parcels will be distributed once in two months by district commission for humanitarian aid during 6 months,” Catrinici specified. After signing the accord, she said the consignment was welcome since the food prices go up and the poor women cannot ensure the children with the food necessary for adequate development. “The children from vulnerable families will suffer the most because of this, since they are more liable to catching diseases and to die,” said a representative of the UNICEF in Moldova, Alexandra Yuster. According to her, the parcels contain by 2 kg of buckwheat, grit wheat, rice, vegetal oil and meat cans. The manufacturers will be selected in a tender. The beneficiaries lists will be updated once in two months. The work in this project will be done in a partnership between the Health Ministry, the Social Protection Ministry and the Local Administration Ministry, the World Bank and the UNICEF.