About Us
Our Goal
Our goal is to eliminate malnutrition and the causes of poverty in the communities we serve.
Our Aim
FMCH Indonesia aims to eliminate malnutrition among Indonesian children under the age of five and the causes of poverty within communities; to improve their health, nutrition, and education status; and to improve the health education and income ability of their mothers.
Our Challenge
Currently the world’s fourth most populated country, with 257 million people, it has experienced steady economic growth over the last few years and is now considered a Middle-Income Country. However, the income gap between rich and poor is growing and almost half the population still live below, or close to, the poverty line.
Marginalised families are the most vulnerable to economic change and, with a third of the population under 18 years of age, children are particularly vulnerable. 1 in 3 children under 5 in Indonesia suffer malnutrition and under-five and infant mortality rates among the poorest families are more than double those of the richest. Many families do not have access to clean water and good healthcare services and live in poor housing with limited sanitation and no cooking facilities. Almost half the children from poor families do not enrol in secondary school.
Our Approach
The causes of malnutrition and the causes of poverty are complex. Families from poor communities, both urban and rural, face numerous challenges including vulnerable employment, inadequate water and sanitation and limited education among parents.
To combat these many problems facing families and their children, a multi-faceted programme has been developed to work together to try and improve their health, nutrition and education:
- Health and nutrition education for parents and community health workers (CHWs) in vulnerable communities to improve long-term health and nutritional status of families we work with.
- Education for girls on women’s rights and reproductive health.
- Medical support for children and parents that we work with to monitor progress and to identify health needs.
- Income generation skills training for children’s mothers to become economically independent.
- Pre-school education for children aged from 3-5 from communities we work with to develop early learning skills and parental commitment to long- term education.
- Pregnancy support for women from vulnerable communities for pregnant mothers in underprivileged areas to better prepare for the delivery and early childcare.
- Smart cart taking our mobile library to children in poor communities and providing entertaining health education through puppet shows and activities.
Yayasan Balita Sehat Indonesia – Registered charity number 198212272010011033.