Food Security and NutritionCapacity Building Experiences

in LAO PDR.

Presented by Dr Somchith AkkhavongDeputy Director

Dept of Hygiene and PreventionMinistry of Health-LAO PDR

I. BackgroundII. Goals and objectivesIII. Target areasIV. Implementing PartnersV. Key activities VI. Lessons learned VII. Recommendations

Outline of the Presentation

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National Nutrition Strategy (NNS)

Address immediate causes

Strategic Direction I

Address underlying causes

Strategic Direction II

Address basic causes

Strategic Direction III

Strategic Objective 1

Prevent and reduce food and vector-borne diseases

Strategic Objective 2

Improve Nutrient Intake

Strategic Objective 3

Improve food access

Strategic Objective 4

Improve food availability

Improve mother and child care practices

Strategic Objective 5

Strategic Objective 7

Improve human capacity

Strategic Objective 8

Improve institutions & coordination

Increase quantity and quality of Information

Strategic Objective 9

Increase investments in nutrition

Strategic Objective 10

Improve environmental health

Strategic Objective 6

National Nutrition Strategy

Capacity Building is one of the 11 bundles of nutrition intervention identified as priority in NNS

Individuals, communities, and institutions that work directly and indirectly influence FNS situation at the local level

The TARGET of Capacity Building

Capacity Building Framework for Food & Nutrition Security , 2011-

2020

National Policies and Programs

Lao PDR made significant progress in nutrition and food security over the past

two years

National Nutrition Policy

12 / 2008 10 / 2009

National Plan of Action on Nutrition

10 / 2009

To improve food and nutrition security of low-income rural families in areas with high concentration of malnutrition

GOAL

To build institutional and individual capacity and coordination regarding food and nutrition security;

To increase knowledge on food and nutrition security concepts at the national and sub-national levels;

To develop capacity for integrating food and nutrition security into national development policies, strategies, plans and programme ;

To build capacity for generating information on food and nutrition security for appropriate assessment, monitoring and evaluation; and

To increase technical knowledge and develop relevant skills on food and nutrition and related topics specifically, food –based interventions

Objectives

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3 main regions have different undernutrition characteristics

34%North

~87,000 children

~107,000 children

33%Central

South

~74,000 children

50%

• High prevalence of Malnutrition

• High prevalence of poor households

• Agro-ecological setting• Wide range of ethnic

diversities• Potential for agriculture• Accessibility• Political leaders are

willing to participate

Criteria of target areas selection

Steering committee (overall guidance) MPI, MAF & MoE, MoH CHAIR; reps of the Ministries: reps of participating national organizations: reps of FAO

PROJECT NANAGEMENT UNIT (MANAGEMENT & COORDINATION)

National Project Dir. MOH

Int’l Technical Advisor

Nat’l Deputy Director, MPI

Nat’l Associated Director

Nat’l Deputy Director,

(inter-sectoral coordination)

MoE (Education-related issues

MAF

Int’l/Nat’l Experts (Implementation at Nat’l/

Nat’l organizations (Imple-mentation at village

Provincial levels) Levels)

Organizational Structure

Capacity –building in Improved Nutrition Counseling Using Trials of Improved Practices

Capacity-building in sustainable home food production

Capacity-building in simple, home based food processing

Capacity-building for effective and efficient program management

Key activities

Setting up of selection criteria using nutrition, health indicators and practical considerations

Courtesy call to provincial /district officials/data collection and reconnaissance visits

Selection of villages

Community Assemblies for Project Orientation and social mobilization

Key strategy

Development of Training materials -> translation and adaptations of some FAO

developed materials -> development of new materials

Pretesting of Training Programme and training materials

Revision/Finalization based on evaluations conducted

Key strategy (cont.)

Translated and adaptedFamily Nutrition GuideHealthy HarvestAssessment ToolField Programme Management :

Food, Nutrition and Development

Training Materials developed

Training Needs Assessment report National Multisectoral Capacity-building Plan

(both documents are available in English and Lao)

Publications

Basic Nutrition Training Guide Food and Nutrition Programme Management Counseling Guides 8 kitchen tested, standardized recipes for

complementary feeding 8 kitchen tested, standardized recipes for

food processing Seasonal Food Calendar

Training Materials

Low knowledge on nutrition and food security Illiteracy of target groups Transportation particularly during rainy season Irregular field visits due to logistic constraints Limited project funds which limited inputs that

can be provided. Low capability of Staff in term of management

and technical Linking food security and nutrition

understanding is very low

Challenges

Political commitment

Well-functioning organization , preferably with a network that extends to the village level can contribute to program success

Leadership in nutrition needs to be developed to create nutrition champions/advocates

Active participation of the people at grassroots is an important ingredient in community-based programs

Incentives are needed to motivate target groups and partners

Lessons Learned

Orientation and training are key to project initiation Coordination, supervision (through regular

meetings/dialogues) and regular technical backstopping is essential particularly for multisectoral programs

Information support and pilot studies that highlight best practices for effective planning, implementation and evaluation are needed

Monitoring and evaluation should be built into the project

Lesson Learned (cont.)

Process documentation should be a regular component of any project to identify best practices

Coaching/mentoring are effective strategies for capacity-building

Trainings, based on a well-conducted training needs assessment ensure the development of responsive programs

Learning by doing is a very effective way of changing behavior and works well at the village level

Lesson Learned (cont.)

Creation of multisectoral TWG on capacity-building

as agreed during multisectoral consultation

meeting

( partnerships with LWU, local civil society

organizations)

The duration of project should be more longer for

Strengthening the technical and managerial

capacity.

Need intensive support from Development partners

Recommendations

THANK YOU