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funder_partner: Queen Mary University of London

Climate Change and Child Malnutrition in Zimbabwe: Evidence to Action

Written by dmedina on . Posted in Uncategorized.

Climate Change and Child Malnutrition in Zimbabwe: Evidence to Action will generate evidence to understand the effects of climate change on child malnutrition in rural Zimbabwe. The overarching hypothesis is that climate change and related weather events indirectly increase child malnutrition by increasing food insecurity and decreasing dietary diversity.

This project will use a multisectoral approach to evidence generation and co-creation of community and policy action that incorporates village, district, provincial and national participation. The project aims to generate evidence linking climate change to malnutrition and co-develop mitigation strategies with communities that directly address the link between climate change and malnutrition.

The project has four activities:

  1. Examine the relationship between climate change in rural Zimbabwe and patterns of malnutrition utilizing environmental data (rainfall, temperature) and national Zimbabwe survey data (livelihoods, climate change mitigation strategies, dietary diversity and child malnutrition).
  2. Explore community understanding of the relationships between climate change and malnutrition with a mixed methods approach in two districts (survey and community-led workshops).
  3. Co-develop and refine climate-smart strategies that address the effects of climate change on malnutrition with agricultural and health cadres.
  4. Develop a communication plan with policymakers to disseminate findings about the relationship between climate change to child malnutrition.

Objectives:

  1. Use environmental data and national-level survey data on climate change and shocks related to climate change and examine associations with nutritional outcomes including food security, dietary diversity and child malnutrition.
  2. Conduct household surveys to understand how agricultural and child feeding practices change under climate variability.
  3. Conduct community workshops using community walks and River of Life Methodology to understand community perspectives on the relationship between climate change and child malnutrition.
  4. Co-develop and refine climate-smart strategies that communities can implement to directly address the relationship between climate change and malnutrition.
  5. Pilot implementation of strategies in two sites utilizing community health and agricultural extension workers.
  6. Share results with policy makers to contextualize malnutrition in the context of climate change policy.

Child Health, Agriculture and Integrated Nutrition (CHAIN)

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Uncategorized.

The proportion of children under five years old who are stunted in Zimbabwe is estimated to be 28%. Stunting leads to a higher risk of dying, poorer school performance and lower wages in adult life. Improving the quantity and quality of food for children under two years of age is the best approach we have to prevent stunting. An earlier project (Sanitation, Hygiene, Infant Nutrition Efficacy, SHINE) provided mothers with information on infant and young child feeding (IYCF) and provided a daily supplement (Nutributter) to provide extra calories and vitamins to children. However, many children still did not meet their daily nutrient requirements and over one-quarter remained stunted.

The SHINE data showed that nutrient intake remained insufficient to meet both macro- and micronutrient requirements for most children. The overarching hypothesis of the CHAIN project is that this nutrient gap can be filled by a combined agriculture and infant-feeding intervention.

Objectives:

  • Deliver an integrated agriculture and infant feeding intervention (“IYCF-plus”) to households in a randomized, community-based trial in rural Zimbabwe
  • Evaluate the impact of IYCF-plus on nutrient intake and growth in young children at risk of stunting
  • Evaluate the impact of the IYCF-plus intervention on biological barriers to nutrient uptake and utilization
  • Identify metabolic signatures of the IYCF-plus intervention in young children