Partnership with Private Sector: a Path to Combat Iodine Deficiency through Universal Salt Iodization in Indonesia
Indonesia has a high risk of Iodine Deficiency Disorder (IDD) with approximately 86.5 million of the population at risk for IDD1. Accordingly, Indonesia has been at the forefront of the Universal Salt Iodization (USI) movement since the 1980s, when the prevalence of goitre was identified.
Nutrition International (NI) Indonesia works to improve the health and well-being across Indonesia. One of NI's priority objectives is to increase the number of households consuming adequately iodized salt. Since 2009, NI has implemented Accelerated USI Program to support the Government of Indonesia (GOI) to reach USI by 2018.
World Health Organization (WHO) recommends USI to address iodine deficiency. Salt is the best medium to supply iodine. It is effective, inexpensive and commonly consumed by all, including those belonging to the lower socio economic strata as well as those prone to IDD. The main goals of the Accelerated USI program are:
- To increase the availability of domestically-produced quality iodized salt.
- To reduce non-iodized salt in West Nusa Tenggara province and the eastern part of Indonesia.
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