New Delhi: Emphasising on the barriers girls face in accessing the nutrition they need, Canada’s first lady Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on Thursday launched the Asian component of Nutrition International’s ‘she’ll grow into it’ campaign.
The wife of visiting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, along with Canadian defence minister Harjit Sajjan, met with 12 adolescent schoolgirls to hear about their goals and the barriers they face in achieving them.
The schoolgirls spoke about the impact the initiative has had on their energy levels and education.
“When I learnt about anaemia, I discovered I had all the symptoms. I used to feel lethargic and could not concentrate in class. But since I have started taking iron and folic acid tablets every week, for the past one year I am able to understand my lesson much better. I have started playing outdoors every evening and I don’t feel tired like I used to,” said Thakor Saloni Varjesang, one of the girls who travelled from Gujarat.
Nutrition International globally launched the campaign in Ottawa on the International Day of the Girl Child in order to draw attention to the importance of good nutrition.
The first lady also hailed women as the “womb of humanity” and asked young women to be fearless and face the world with their heads held high. “Girls and women are the womb of humanity and they will be fully participative citizens... And men are our allies in the quest for equality,” she said.
“Nutrition International’s Right Start program, funded by Canada, aims to support India’s priority for addressing malnutrition, combatting anaemia, and educating girls. The $11.5 million CAD program focuses on women, girls, and children to ensure they have the nutrition they need to be healthy, grow, and learn. With targeted interventions such as fortification, nutrition education, training of health workers and weekly iron and folic acid (WIFA) supplementation, this collaboration aims to reach almost seven million girls to reduce incidences of anaemia,” said a statement by Nutrition International.
