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What We Do
The Foundation for Mother and Child Health (FMCH) aims to help children
reach their potential by improving the health, education and skills of
both mothers and their children.
It has long been known that mothers play a crucial role in ensuring the
sustainability of programmes developed to alleviate undernutrition and
poverty amongst children. Educate a woman and the family gains enormously.
Well nourished women face fewer risks during pregnancy and childbirth,
and their children are better developed physically and mentally: performing
better at school, growing into healthier adults and able to give their
own children a better start in life.
The World Health Organisation states that:
- Poor nutrition contributes to 1 out of 2 deaths (53%) among children
aged under five in developing countries.
- 1 out of 4 preschool children suffers from under-nutrition, which
can severely affect a child's mental and physical development.
- Under-nutrition among pregnant women in developing countries leads
to 1 out of 6 infants born with low birth weight. This is not only a
risk factor for neonatal deaths, but also causes learning disabilities,
mental, retardation, poor health, blindness and premature death.
- 1 out of 3 people in developing countries are affected by vitamin
and mineral deficiencies and therefore more subject to infection, birth
defects and impaired physical and psycho-intellectual development.
FMCH currently has programmes in Indonesia and Mumbai, India.
The Foundation for Mother and Child Health provides:
- supplementary feeding programmes for underweight children
- health, hygiene and nutrition lessons for mothers
- training programmes for community health workers
- early childhood learning for young children
- training programmes for preschool teachers
- scholarships for primary school children
- skills training for mothers to help improve their families’
income
For an in depth look at the programmes being carried out in each region
please click below.
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