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Directors Bio 3471 2756

AZUCENA MILANA-DAYANGHIRANG, MD, MCH, CESO III
ASSISTANT SECRETARY and EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
NATIONAL NUTRITION COUNCIL

Dr. Azucena M. Dayanghirang is an experienced public health leader. For the past 29 years, she has been a facilitator and a trainer for various health programs particularly on Maternal Child Health and Nutrition. She has served the people of Davao as City Nutrition Action Officer from 1991-1995; Chief of the Technical Services Division and Medical Officer VI of Davao City Health Office from 1996 to 2005; as well as the Provincial Health Officer II and Provincial Nutrition Action Officer of Davao del Sur from 2008 to 2016.

During her stint in the local government, she led the City Nutrition Committee in the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of health and nutrition programs. She initiated the “Fresh Milk Supplemental Feeding Program,” which led to the reduction of protein-energy malnutrition among 0-6-year-old children. She also successfully lobbied for the regularization of 32 Nutritionist-Dietitians deployed in the 16 Districts of Davao City in 1996.

In 2016, she was elected as the National President of the Nutrition Action Officers' Association of the Philippines (NAOPA), Inc. Shortly after, she was appointed as Deputy Executive Director of the National Nutrition Council (NNC), an attached agency of the Department of Health, Philippines. In August 2019, Dr. Dayanghirang was appointed as the Executive Director of the NNC. Currently, she is designated as the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Philippines Government Focal Point and most recently, appointed as a member of the Executive Committee of the Global Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement representing Asia and Papua New Guinea.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed the appointment of Dr. Dayanghirang to Career Executive Service Officer (CESO) Rank III effective 3 December 2020. Recently, she was upgraded to Executive Director IV with the rank of Assistant Secretary as approved by President Duterte through Executive Secretary Salvador C. Medialdea on 21 July 2021.

NNC- Asec. Dayanghirang speaks at the NEO-Orientation Course for the Vice- Governors of the Philippines

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Category: Directors Corner

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NNC Assistant Secretary and Executive Director, Azucena M. Dayanghirang was one of the distinguished speakers in the currently concluded NEO- Orientation Course for Local Legislators: Primed Leaders for Renewed Local Governance for all Vice Governors of the Philippines on August 18, 2022 at the Manila Hotel.

In support of LGUs and their elected leaders , the Department of the Interior & Local Government through LGA has organized the Program for Newly Elected Officials. The program provides harmonized and holistic capacity development interventions to assist newly- ele11cted local officials in effectively transitioning from campaigning to governing their respective LGUs . It also aims to formulate First 100 Days Action Plan and Legislative Agenda to efficiently jumpstart the critical days of office and proactively plan to enhance leadership and management capacities of the Sanggunian towards excellent performance .

Asec. Dayanghirang was invited to share about Localizing the National Framework towards boosting Food Security and Achieving Zero Hunger Communities. The highlights of her talk were Current Hunger and Malnutrition Situation of the country ; Localizing the Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition ( PPAN) through Local Nutrition Planning; Critical Role of the LGUs  in addressing food insecurity towards achieving zero-hunger communities and key steps in jump starting actions and prioritizing nutrition. “ Malnutrition when passed on to the next generations and throughout the life stages  will result to an overall reduced productivity , stunted economic growth and exacerbated . This further highlights the importance of prioritizing nutrition early on, most especially and ideally when there are no complications yet , ” she pointed out.

The Assistant Secretary further encouraged  the Vice -governors to organize their Local Nutrition Committee (LNC) , to achieve our desired nutrition outcomes . Thus , the Provincial Nutrition Committee is expected to perform their roles in preparing the Provincial Nutrition Action Plan and coordinate nutrition and nutrition -related activities of the member agencies. She urged the Vice-governors to be the Nutrition Champions and be the instrument toward achieving a better nutrition situation in the Philippines.

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