It took the death of one child to immunize the next

Junaedah, Kosir and Baby Mohammad Faqih: “My baby is now ready-to-go-to war against diseases.”

Junaedah’s only daughter, Soliha, would have been 5 years old now had she lived. But like too many children in Indonesia, little Soliha died at just 3 months old, from a disease she could have easily been protected from.

Her death has not been for nothing, though. The little girl’s passing helped spur Junaedah, also known as Juju, and her husband Kosir, to immunize the youngest of their six children, Mohammad Faqih.

Juju says she has already seen the difference between Mohammad Faqih and his older brothers who weren’t immunized.

“My other children were small and skinny, different from this little boy who is chubby and healthy: immune and rarely sick,” says Juju, who hails from Kluwut village in the District of Brebes, Central Java, Indonesia.

Muslim leaders at forefront of social change to reduce stunting

 by Iwan Hasan

Kyai Subhan at the pesantren in Brebes, Central Java

© UNICEF Indonesia/2014/Iwan

BREBES, Indonesia, April 2014 - Subhan Makmun, known as Kyai Subhan, looks like a typical traditional Islamic scholar or ulama. He lives among thousands of his students in an Islamic boarding school in Brebes, Central Java. He wears a traditional sarong and a black Malay cap.  

But looks can be deceiving. Subhan’s view on Islamic Syariah is very progressive. “Islam is not narrow but broad,” he says.

Kyai Subhan is one of the most revered ulamas in Central Java thanks to his vast knowledge of Islamic jurisprudence. But classical Islamic books are not the only books he reads. He says he’s read “Facts for Life”, a book on child care published by UNICEF in association with several other UN agencies.

UNICEF Indonesia and faith-based organization NU join forces to reduce stunting

UNICEF Indonesia Representative Angela Kearney and K.H Said Aqil Siradj, Chairman of NU

Jakarta, Indonesia, August 2013 – UNICEF Indonesia has signed a partnership agreement with Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the largest Muslim organisation in the country to further enhance its efforts to improve the nutritional status of children and to reduce the high prevalence of stunting.

The collaboration will focus on addressing stunting through strengthening the government’s Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme or PKH. This model is currently being piloted in two districts: Brebes in Central Java and Sikka in East Nusa Tenggara through a programme called PKH Prestasi.

For UNICEF Indonesia, this is the first formal partnership with a faith-based organisation. With an estimated number of followers of more than 50 million people, Nahdlatul Ulama is one of the largest Muslim organizations in the world. Around 60% of the population in Brebes are members of NU and the organization has enormous clout in the district. NU has affiliations in most major Islamic boarding schools (pesantren) across Indonesia, including in Brebes. NU also funds hospitals and schools, both religious and secular.