There are about 13 million children under the age of 5 in the country suffering from chronic malnutrition. In the next 20 years or so, if something is not done immediately to rectify this problem, these children will be a major burden on the country, which is dashing its way to becoming the world's fifth largest economy.
They are a generation that will be unable to compete in the labor market, and will require assistance over the course of their lives as many deal with permanent physical or mental disabilities.
This unnecessary disaster is unfolding right now, according to a United Nations World Food Program (WFP) report, which found malnutrition widespread in the country. The report, issued Wednesday, warns that millions of young Indonesians are at risk or retarded development as a result of chronic malnutrition.
Ironically, this tragedy is not the result of food shortages, but rather a lack of infrastructure to distribute food across the sprawling archipelago.
Whatever the cause, the outcome will be calamitous. Malnutrition retards the growth of children, both physically and mentally. In many cases poor nutrition has led to hydrocephalus (abnormally high amounts of fluid in the skull), heart disease and other incurable illnesses. Malnutrition also can lead to death. According to the WFP, every five seconds a child dies of hunger somewhere in the world – or 720 deaths an hour.
There are currently around 400 million malnourished children in the world, 3.25 percent of them in Indonesia.
Childhood malnutrition is one of the many health crises Indonesia has been unable to overcome since the Asian monetary crisis threw the country into poverty in 1997. The monetary crisis saw millions lose their jobs and many more lose purchasing power.
Many people in rural areas have had to sell land to get by, as a result they no longer have plots of land large enough to cultivate. In urban areas there have been fewer jobs to go around, while the prices of basic goods have continued to rise.
In a recent series of comprehensive reports on the poverty situation here, the World Bank said 17.8 percent of people in Indonesia are regarded as living in poverty, as measured by those with less than US$1.55 in purchasing power parity per day.
Low educational levels among parents has been known to aggravate the malnutrition problem. Several studies have found that most malnourished children are raised by parents who dropped out of or never went to school. They have a very minimal knowledge and understanding of malnutrition and health problems.
The government, with tremendous help from international organizations and donors such as the WFP, has initiated various programs to fight childhood malnutrition. These include free meals, regular medical checkups and education for parents.
Malnutrition rates in the country have stagnated in recent years, but enough is still not being done to overcome the problem.
The latest WFP report clearly blames an absence of infrastructure for continuing childhood malnutrition. In the end, the government must be fully responsible for infrastructure development.
It is obvious the government learned nothing from a food scare that took place almost two years ago in the remote Papua regency of Yahukimo, causing several deaths. Only after stories began appearing in the media did the government move to build a road to ease food deliveries into the isolated region.
Such a tragedy must not reoccur. The government must build roads to connect isolated areas with the outside world before people begin dying from malnutrition.
In the long run good infrastructure will help bring in more investment, stimulate local economies and eventually eradicate poverty, which is at the root of most health problems, including malnutrition.
Childhood malnutrition is a preventable tragedy. The government and the entire nation are responsible for ensuring the food needs of our 28 million children, particularly those from low-income families, are met. The nation's future depends on these children. The healthier they are, the healthier and wealthier the country will be.