In Sierra Leone, the diet of pregnant and lactating women and that of children 6 to 23 months old (1,000-days households) are deficient in vitamin A-rich foods. This is thought to be a contributor to the very high rates of stunting among children in rural Tonkolili District.
Anemia, a widespread public health problem, affects nearly 25 percent of the world’s population and undermines countries’ progress in health and economic development.
Anemia is a major public health problem. Global estimates of those affected by anemia include 43 percent of children under age five, 29 percent of non-pregnant women, and 38 percent of pregnant women (Stevens et al 2013).
Iron deficiency is one of the primary causes of anemia, a condition that affects over 1.5 billion people globally. Policymakers who want to address iron deficiency anemia through a food-based approach need information on food consumption trends and practices to estimate daily intake of iron by different subsets of a given population.
Schauer C, Sunley N, Melgarejo Hubbell C, et al. Experiences and lessons learned for planning and supply of micronutrient powders interventions. Matern Child Nutr. 2017;13(S1):e12494. https://doi.org/10.1111/ mcn.12494
This paper focuses on programmatic experiences in the planning stages of an MNP intervention, encompassing assessment, enabling environment and adaptation, as well as considerations for supply.
Reerink I, Namaste S, Poonawala A, et al. Experiences and lessons learned for delivery of micronutrient powders interventions. Matern Child Nutr. 2017;13(S1): e12495. https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.12495
This paper focuses on programmatic experiences related to MNP delivery (models, platforms, and channels), SBCC, and training. Methods included a review of published and grey literature, interviews with key informants, and deliberations throughout the consultation process.
Vossenaar M, Tumilowicz A, D'Agostino A, et al. Experiences and lessons learned for programme improvement of micronutrient powders interventions. Matern Child Nutr. 2017;13(S1):e12496. https://doi.org/ 10.1111/mcn.12496
This paper focuses on how MNP interventions undertook key elements of programme improvement, specifically, the use of programme theory, monitoring, process evaluation, and supportive supervision.
Micronutrient powders (MNP) are an efficacious intervention to reduce iron deficiency anemia and to fill nutrient gaps in young children, but there is limited published implementation research, which is needed as countries are increasingly implementing or scaling up programs. In 2015, SPRING held the Micronutrient Powders Consultation, bringing together 49 MNP program implementers and experts to identify and summarize the most recent MNP program experiences and lessons learned for operationalizing MNP for young children.
SPRING/Kyrgyz Republic, funded by USAID to address issues of chronic malnutrition and anemia among women and children of Kyrgyz Republic, hosted a round table event on Friday, November 17, 2017 to disseminate the findings from a series of four population-level surveys undertaken by the project over the past four years, including gains in nutrition outcome indicators.
The SPRING project is a seven-year USAID-funded Cooperative Agreement to strengthen global and country efforts to scale up high-impact nutrition practices and policies and improve maternal and child nutrition outcomes.