Perspectives On Localization
Professional Services Council, August 2021
- Capacity Strengthening
Reports and Tools
Efforts to increase localization can increase local inclusion and capacity. Challenges include trade-offs among potentially competing objectives, the importance of local voice and institutions, and how to mitigate risks while building pathways for involvement. It highlights the importance of choosing appropriate implementing mechanisms, identifying objectives and metrics, moving beyond aid dependency to building institutions, considering the role of third-country and regional institutions and diaspora communities, and strengthening the capacity of local implementing partners.
Physical Discipline, Deprivation, and Differential Risk of Developmental Delay Across 17 Countries
Salhi, Carmel, Elizabeth Beatriz, Ryan McBain, et al. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, March 2020
- Early Childhood Development
Research Articles
Cross-national associations exist between socio-emotional and cognitive delay and parental physical discipline, not having books, and not counting with the child. This article is behind a paywall.
A Pilot to Promote Early Child Development within Health Systems in Mozambique: A Qualitative Evaluation
Jeong, Joshua, Lilia Bliznashka, Marilyn N. Ahun, et al. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, December 2021
Research Articles
Researchers assessed the delivery, acceptability, perceptions, barriers, and facilitators of integrating developmental monitoring, nutritional screening, and counseling in health facilities. They identified programmatic recommendations for enhancing service delivery and maximizing potential impacts on nurturing care and early child development outcomes. This article is behind a paywall.
Planning Nutritionally Adequate Diets for Groups: Methods Used to Develop Recommendations for a Child and Adult Care Food Program
Murphy, Suzanne P., Ann L. Yaktine, Alicia L. Carriquiry. Advances in Nutrition, October 2020
Research Articles
Because of between-person variations in food choices and nutrient requirements, it is important to select a Target Median Intake that will minimize inadequate nutrient intakes. Ensuring that distributions do not result in intakes that exceed the Tolerable Upper Intake Level for any nutrient is critical. This article is behind a paywall.
Planting Seeds of Change: Reconceptualizing What People Eat as Eating Practices and Patterns
Olstad, D.L., S.I. Kirkpatrick, International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, March 2021
Research Articles
While language focusing on food consumption as an individual behavior encourages interventions to educate individuals to make better choices, language of eating practices and patterns invokes a socioecological frame that regards consumption practices as enmeshed within broader social contexts. Shifting language away from individual behaviors may more effectively address the root causes of unhealthy eating patterns, encourage sustained dietary change, and reduce dietary and health inequities.
Policies for Optimal Nutrition-Sensitive Options: A Study of Food and Nutrition Security Policies, Strategies, and Programs in Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa
Sibanda, Simbarashe, Pamela Munjoma-Muchinguri, Phyllis Ohene-Agyei, et al. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, May 2023
- Food Systems
Research Articles
Recommendations include conducting research on sustainable funding mechanisms, researching and implementing evidence-based interventions, and identifying indicators to measure the impact of agriculture on nutrition and to ensure the efficient use of resources. Other critical actions include investigating the most effective incentives to improve nutrition outcomes, exploring how to create functional public-private partnerships, and identifying ways to increase meaningful participation of women and young people in food and agriculture value chains.
Policy Brief: Kakamega County, Demonstrating the Value of Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Investments in Kakamega County
USAID Advancing Nutrition, July 2023
- Nutrition in Humanitarian Contexts
Reports and Tools
Leaders and stakeholders in Kakamega County, Kenya, used a multi-sectoral nutrition (MSN) approach to set priority targets for the scale-up of interventions over the next five years. They developed a scorecard that defines targets for each intervention, and includes a monitoring and accountability framework, and outlines the costs of interventions.
Political Economy of Agri-Nutrition: What’s Politics Got to Do with Nutrients?
Agriculture, Nutrition & Health Academy, June 2022
- Food Systems
Reports and Tools
Research and policy agendas should focus on who and what is given space in nutrition debates, how power is exercised, knowledge of alternative and sustainable food systems, and incorporating equality issues in the design and evaluation of interventions. Instituting levies on the food industry to fund public and community initiatives to address malnutrition, encouraging diffuse power concentration and democratic food governance, and increasing the role of advocacy partners in research and evaluations are important to address the causes of malnutrition.
Population-Based Approaches for Monitoring the Nurturing Care Environment for Early Childhood Development: A Scoping Review
Pedroso, Jéssica, Stefanie Eugênia dos Anjos Coelho Kubo, Priscila Olin Silva, et al. Maternal & Child Nutrition, November 2021
- Early Childhood Development
Research Articles
There are several methodological challenges to building a population-based approach to monitoring nurturing care environments. Authors recommend prioritizing valid approaches based on reliable indicators, ensuring flexibility for different contexts and governance levels, creating a robust equity approach, prioritizing disaggregated data, and ensuring that monitoring systems are user-friendly.
Population-Based Survey Data Use for Improved Nutrition Policies and Programs Webinar
USAID Advancing Nutrition, May 2022
- Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning
Events
Speakers present an e-learning course on nutrition indicators. They share country-specific experiences using population-based survey data for policy, program design, and implementation purposes. This is a webinar.
Potential Consequences of Expanded MUAC-Only Programs on Targeting of Acutely Malnourished Children and Ready-to-use-Therapeutic-Food Allocation: Lessons from Cross-Sectional Surveys
Guesdon, Benjamin, Alexia Couture, Danka Pantchova, et al. BMC Nutrition, Vol. 6, February 2020
- Nutrition in Humanitarian Contexts
Research Articles
The “expanded MUAC-only” approach is being used in acute malnutrition programming, with a mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) of <125mm as the only measurement for screening and admission for treatment. This study explored the impact of the approach on eligibility for treatment and access to ready-to-use therapeutic foods. The results showed that 25 percent of all severe acute malnutrition cases would be undiagnosable with this measure; a further 20 percent would be misreported as moderate acute malnutrition.
The Potential Impacts of the COVID-19 Crisis on Maternal and Child Undernutrition in Low and Middle Income Countries
Osendarp, Saskia, Jonathan Akuoku, Robert Black, et al. Nature Portfolio Journal [Preprint], December 2020
Research Articles
The pandemic presents opportunities to accelerate introduction and scale-up of multiple micronutrient, balanced energy-protein, and small-quantity lipid nutrient supplements. Strategies to prevent interruption of essential health and nutrition services, maintain an adequate food supply, and mitigate impacts of the economic crisis exist, but there are insufficient data on the efficiency and effectiveness of mitigation measures in health, food, and social protection systems.
The Power of Ownership: Transforming U.S. Foreign Assistance
Save the Children and Oxfam, July 2021
- Capacity Strengthening
Reports and Tools
Development agencies can use several approaches to shift responsibility, accountability, and decision-making power to local government officials, civil society, and entrepreneurs. Findings suggest projects with the highest levels of stakeholder engagement include strong local ownership. The greatest threat to sustainability is the lack of a clear plan to secure resources beyond donor funding.
The Power of Small Fish to Nourish Women and Children
USAID, October 2021
- Knowledge Management
Reports and Tools
Dr. Thilsted shares insights about nutrition-sensitive approaches to aquaculture and food systems. She discusses challenges for addressing nutritional needs of infants, young children, and pregnant and lactating women and shares how she engages with agriculture, food security, and food systems colleagues. While diversified food systems improve nutrition, livelihoods, and women’s empowerment, Thilsted warns that the international community must engage communities when designing programs.
Powering Women—Promising Futures
Micronutrient Forum, November 2021
- Knowledge Management
Events
The summit focused on women’s rights to health and nutrition and new and transformative thinking, investments, and actions to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals on nutrition and gender equality. This is a webinar. The recording is available in English, French, and Spanish.
A Practical Guide to Using Routine Data in Evaluation
Data for Impact, August 2020
Reports and Tools
Technical briefs address how routine data can be used to assess cost effectiveness and determine disease counts and incidence, treatment cascades, program coverage levels, and service utilization rates for several health issues.
Preanalytic and Analytic Factors Affecting the Measurement of Haemoglobin Concentration: Impact on Global Estimates of Anaemia Prevalence
Larson, Leila M., Sabine Braat, Mohammed Imrul Hasan, et al. BMJ Global Health, July 2021
Research Articles
Global estimates of anemia prevalence derived from capillary hemoglobin may lead to erroneous severity classification, but point-of-care or other instruments should not introduce variation if properly used.
Predictors of Complementary Feeding Practices among Children Aged 6–23 Months in Five Countries in the Middle East and North Africa Region
Shaker-Berbari, Linda, Vilma Qahoush Tyler, Chaza Akik, et al. Maternal & Child Nutrition, June 2021
- Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning
Research Articles
Findings showed that maternal education and age, paternal education and wealth, culture and geographic location, and utilization of health services were associated with minimum dietary diversity, minimum meal frequency, and minimum acceptable diet. Interventions to improve complementary feeding practices should be tailored to the population at the caregiver, household, service use, community, and policy levels.
Prevention of Child Wasting: Results of a Child Health & Nutrition Research Initiative (CHNRI) Prioritisation Exercise
Frison, Severine, Chloe Angood, Tanya Khara, et al. PLoS One, 15(2), February 2020
- Nutrition in Humanitarian Contexts
Research Articles
With nearly 50 million children under 5 years of age wasted, more research is needed on effective interventions. To help identify and prioritize the most important outstanding research questions in this area, the authors conducted a research prioritization exercise using the “Child Health and Nutrition Research Initiative” method. They compiled lists of research gaps from multiple sources, categorized them into themes, and used an expert group to identify and rank the 40 most critical questions. The study concluded that research is most needed on 1) how the pathways to wasting encompass the in-utero environment, 2) wasting and early infancy, 3) the early identification of wasting, and 4) the most effective wasting interventions.
Prevention, Early Detection and Treatment of Wasting in Children 0-59 Months through National Health Systems in the Context of COVID-19
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organization, August 2020
- Nutrition in Humanitarian Contexts
Reports and Tools
This document adapts existing guidance on service delivery for the prevention, early detection, and treatment of child wasting in the context of COVID-19.
Primary Health Care Integration Landscape Analysis: Literature Review Findings
USAID MOMENTUM, February 2023
- Nutrition and Health Systems
Reports and Tools
This literature review synthesizes information about the current integration of immunization and primary health care services in low- and middle-income countries. Some facilities have also integrated nutrition services into reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health or immunization services. While integration increases efficiency, opportunities to prevent disease and uptake of services, staff skills, financing, and drug supplies can pose challenges.
Primary Health Care and Nutrition
Kraef, Christian, Benjamin Wood, Peter von Philipsborn, et al. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, December 2020
Research Articles
A comprehensive primary health care platform should be used to address malnutrition. Priority actions include encouraging primary health care providers to support multi-sectoral action on nutrition, empowering communities and patients to address unhealthy diets, and ensuring delivery of high-quality nutrition interventions.
The Principles of Nurturing Care Promote Human Capital and Mitigate Adversities from Preconception through Adolescence
Black, Maureen M., Jere R. Behrman, Bernadette Daelmans, et al. BMJ Global Health, April 2021
Research Articles
Extending the Nurturing Care Framework from preconception through age 20 in laws, policies, and services improves human capital by promoting resilience and adaptive developmental trajectories and mitigating negative consequences of adversities.
Prioritizing Investments in Pre-Service Health Education in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Human Centered Approach
Consortium of Universities for Global Health, March 2022
- Capacity Strengthening
Events
Speakers present a human-centered design approach to strengthen health workforce capacity and a set of educational capacity frameworks that provide operational definitions and criteria for progress to guide investment in pre-service education. This is a webinar.