Transform Nutrition West Africa Update

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Issue 3 April 2019

In this third issue of our regular update, we bring you a roundup of relevant news, upcoming events, and the most up-to-date nutrition evidence relevant to the West Africa region. Please feel free to share any feedback, news, or events with M.Darkwaa@cgiar.org.

NEWS from Transform Nutrition West Africa

West African nutrition professionals participate in inspiring short course

Transform Nutrition West Africa hosted 32 nutrition professionals in March from nine West African countries for 5 day short course on ‘Evidence for policies and programming’ that helped the participants compile an evidence base to inform transformational change in nutrition at a country or regional level. This was the second in a series of four nutrition leadership courses being held in West Africa.

Countdown to 2030 and TNWA collaborate on regional workshop

Transform Nutrition West Africa is collaborating with Countdown to 2030 on a Regional Nutrition Workshop that will take place June 10-14 in Senegal and will include nominated participants from the region with expertise in nutrition analysis.

Key regional actors agree on joint Nutrition working plan

In February, Transform Nutrition West Africa, Alive & Thrive, and UNICEF participated in a dialogue in Bobo Dialassou, Burkina Faso, A number of complementarities and opportunities for joint working and planning were identified for the next two years with the West African Health Organisation (WAHO).

Addressing the emerging overweight and obesity public health challenges in West Africa

Transform Nutrition West Africa identified overweight and obesity as major emerging challenges for the region during the project inception phase from secondary data analysis, and presented a number of activities that they are currently focused on related to these challenges. This multistakeholder consultative dialogue was organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN in March.

NEWS from partners and the region

This blog from Emergency Nutrition Network (ENN) highlights the most recent issue of Nutrition Exchange features a number of stories from the West Africa region, including Building Parliamentarian Networks for Nutrition in West Africa and an interview with the Mali SUN country focal point.
A randomized trial in Burkina Faso by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and Centre Muraz investigates how recent advances in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) could potentially transform healthcare services in low- and middle-income countries.
A Webinar: Dietary transitions in African Cities from TACLED and the DFC projects will be held on Thursday May 9, 13.00-13.50 (British summer time). Please register for the Anglophone event here.
In Burkina Faso the African Development Bank is helping to fight malnutrition and poverty in the Sahel by funding a Programme to Build Resilience to Food and Nutrition Insecurity.
UNICEF-WHO-World Bank: Joint Child Malnutrition Estimates 2019 edition – interactive dashboard
The Quarterly Newsletter of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Regional Food Security Reserve is now available.
The African launch of the EAT-Lancet Report at the 32nd African Union Assembly, Ethiopia, focused on how to nourish Africa through improved nutrition and sustainable food systems.
Côte d’Ivoire has launched a new Multisectoral Programme on Nutrition and Early Child Development, which is supported by The Power of Nutrition and the World Bank.
The Government of Japan has signed a partnership agreement with the United Nations World Food Programme to support the national school meals programme and contribute to the treatment of child malnutrition in Guinea-Bissau.
Obesity and diet-related diseases in Ghana are rising, particularly in urban areas. This study set out to understand why and identify what communities and government can do to reverse this trend and improve health.

EVIDENCE

The following six peer-reviewed studies have been selected, as they demonstrate rigor in their methods, highlight areas of concern, and identify new knowledge for future action in the West Africa region:

Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly (BBF) is an initiative designed to track country readiness and progress to effectively scale up breastfeeding programmes. The study, How Does ‘Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly' Work? A Program Impact Pathways Analysis, published in Maternal & Child Nutrition, evaluates the pretesting of BBF carried out in Ghana and Mexico.
Translating the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes into National Measures in Nine Countries includes two African countries (Burkina Faso and Ethiopia).
The Nutrition-Friendly School Initiative was developed in 2006 to counter the double burden of malnutrition and was implemented on a pilot basis in primary schools in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) in 2009. A new study, Impact of the Nutrition-Friendly School Initiative: Analysis of Anthropometric and Biochemical Data among School-aged Children in Ouagadougou, reports on data in the baseline and final surveys.
A study in Public Health Nutrition evaluates the Effects of Multiannual, Seasonal Unconditional Cash Transfers on Food Security and Dietary Diversity in Rural Burkina Faso, which are part of The Moderate Acute Malnutrition Out (MAM'Out) cluster-randomized controlled trial.
Iron deficiency (ID) is the most common form of nutritional deficiency, particularly in young children and childbearing age women. A study in Nutrients found that Hibiscus sabdariffa Meal Improves Iron Status of Childbearing Age Women and Prevents Stunting in Their Toddlers in Northern Ghana.
A qualitative study published in the Hohoe Municipality, Ghana, looks at Mothers' experiences with neonatal care for low birth weight infants at home.

We have also highlighted a number of insightful recent reports and web articles, including:

A new Lancet study, The Impact at Scale of the Ghana School Feeding Programme on Primary School-Age Children's Anthropometry: A Cluster Randomized Trial, which is aimed at evaluating the impact of the national school feeding programme in Ghana on school-age children's anthropometry indicators.
A report from Sight and Life, Scaling up Rice Fortification in West Africa, discusses the roles of key stakeholders and essential processes at the national and regional level that have advanced large-scale food fortification across West Africa, while highlighting important lessons learned that may be applicable to other countries and regions.
The impact of food assistance on food insecure populations during conflict in Mali is a study from International Initiative for Impact Evaluations in which the researchers build on data to evaluate the impact of food assistance on food security, nutrition, and education-related outcomes in rural populations.
A discussion paper from IFPRI examines Women’s Empowerment and Child Nutrition in Polygynous Households of Northern Ghana.
A report from the FAO, Africa: Regional Africa Overview of Food Security and Nutrition, outlines why Africa is not on track to meet Sustainable Development Goal 2.

About Transform Nutrition West Africa

Transform Nutrition West Africa is a regional platform to enable effective policy and programmatic action on nutrition, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation from 2017–2021 and led by the International Food Policy Research Institute. We want you to join us and be part of a network of people and organisations in West Africa using evidence to generate change.

About this update

This Transform Nutrition West Africa Update features news and summaries of articles published in peer-reviewed journals as well as grey literature, including reports, briefs, or other forms of evidence from researchers, NGOs, or other organizations/institutions. The presented studies were selected as they demonstrated rigor in their methods and analysis, and relevance to the region and target audience of Transform Nutrition West Africa. There are two main sections: peer-reviewed article summaries and grey literature summaries (from websites and google scholar).This publication has been prepared by Transform Nutrition West Africa and has not been peer-reviewed. Any opinions stated herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the policies of the International Food Policy Research Institute.