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Strengthening Systems for Nutrition

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Assessing Progress in Implementing Uganda's Nutrition Action Plan

Agaba, Edgar, Amanda Pomeroy-Stevens, Shibani Ghosh, and Jeffrey K. Griffiths. 2016. “Assessing Progress in Implementing Uganda’s Nutrition Action Plan.” Food and Nutrition Bulletin 37 (4_suppl): S142–50. doi:10.1177/0379572116674553.

The 2011 Uganda Nutrition Action Plan (UNAP) established 2016 maternal and child nutrition targets. However, there is a lack of routine district-level data collection to assess UNAP implementation. The NIL collected serial household-level survey data (n = 3600) in 6 districts, including 2 UNAP implementation districts, in 2012 and 2014. Questionnaires focused on food security, nutrition, and health, among others, and included specific indicators relevant to UNAP’s targets.

Prioritizing and Funding the Uganda Nutrition Action Plan

Pomeroy-Stevens, Amanda, Alexis D’Agostino, Nancy Adero, Hannah Foehringer Merchant, Abel Muzoora, Ezekiel Mupere, Edgar Agaba, and Lidan Du. 2016. “Prioritizing and Funding the Uganda Nutrition Action Plan.” Food and Nutrition Bulletin 37 (4_suppl): S124–41. doi:10.1177/0379572116674554.

In 2010, Uganda began developing its first multisectoral nutrition plan, the Uganda Nutrition Action Plan (UNAP), to reduce malnutrition. While the UNAP signals high-level commitment to addressing nutrition, knowledge gaps remain about how to successfully implement such a plan. We tracked the UNAP’s influence on the process of priority setting and funding for nutrition from 2013 to 2015.

Implementing Multisector Nutrition Programs in Ethiopia and Nepal

Kennedy, Eileen, Habtamu Fekadu, Shibani Ghosh, Kedar Baral, Dale Davis, Diplav Sapkota, and Patrick Webb. 2016. “Implementing Multisector Nutrition Programs in Ethiopia and Nepal.” Food and Nutrition Bulletin 37 (4_suppl): S115–23. doi:10.1177/0379572116674552.

Effective governance is essential for effective nutrition program implementation. There are additional challenges in launching multisector plans to enhance nutritional status. The present study compares the challenges and opportunities in Ethiopia and Nepal in designing and implementing a multisector plan for nutrition. 

Optimizing the Multisectoral Nutrition Policy Cycle: A Systems Perspective

Lamstein, Sascha, Amanda Pomeroy-Stevens, Patrick Webb, and Eileen Kennedy. 2016. “Optimizing the Multisectoral Nutrition Policy Cycle.” Food and Nutrition Bulletin 37 (4_suppl): S107–14. doi:10.1177/0379572116675994.

Based on the data collected in Uganda, Nepal, and Ethiopia, the papers included in this supplement fill a critical gap in evidence regarding multisectoral National Nutrition Action Plans. The studies offer new data and new thinking on how and why governance, effective financial decentralization, and improved accountability all matter for nutrition actions in low-income countries. This introductory paper offers an overview of the current state of evidence and thinking on the multisectoral nutrition policy cycle, including how governance and financing support that process.

Operationalizing Multi-sectoral Coordination and Collaboration for Improved Nutrition

Reducing undernutrition requires a commitment from multiple sectors, yet documentation on how to collaborate across sectors to reach global goals is scant. Through a three-country assessment and literature review, SPRING investigated approaches to multi-sectoral collaboration for nutrition. This paper highlights lessons that USAID and its implementing partners learned, and provides a series of recommendations to guide the designing, implementing, and monitoring of future collaboration.