Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Mar 7: NITI Aayog has signed a Statement of Intent (SOI) with UNICEF India to strengthen healthcare and nutrition initiatives in the country’s Aspirational Districts and Aspirational Blocks. The partnership aims to improve maternal and child nutrition outcomes in underserved regions through coordinated interventions.

The agreement was signed by Rohit Kumar, additional secretary and Mission director of the Aspirational Districts Programme at NITI Aayog, and Arjan de Wagt, Deputy Representative at UNICEF India.

According to NITI Aayog, the collaboration will promote multi-stakeholder engagement and strengthen systems for implementing nutrition and health programmes at the block level. Kumar said partnerships with organisations like UNICEF India would help address key health and nutrition challenges and improve last-mile delivery of services in priority regions.

Through its platform IMPAct4Nutrition (I4N), UNICEF India will provide technical expertise and facilitate engagement with businesses, public sector enterprises and industry associations. The initiative will also help channel corporate social responsibility (CSR) investments into nutrition-focused programmes.

Key focus areas under the agreement include improving Anganwadi infrastructure, increasing nutrition awareness, strengthening the uptake of the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), and building the capacity of frontline workers.

The partnership will also mobilise CSR partners, encourage community participation and create knowledge-sharing platforms to identify and replicate successful health and nutrition practices across Aspirational Districts and Blocks.

Earlier this week, NITI Aayog also signed an agreement with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to advance sustainable development initiatives in these regions under the Japan–India cooperative programme supporting the Sustainable Development Goals.