1. Food Security and Nutrition Capacity Building Experiences in LAO PDR.
Presented by Dr Somchith Akkhavong
Deputy Director
Dept of Hygiene and Prevention
Ministry of Health-LAO PDR

2. Outline of the Presentation
I. Background
II. Goals and objectives
III. Target areas
IV. Implementing Partners
V. Key activities
VI. Lessons learned
VII. Recommendations

3. National Nutrition Strategy (NNS) National Nutrition Strategy
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

4. The TARGET of Capacity Building
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

5. National Policies and Programs
Lao PDR made significant progress in nutrition and food security over the past two years
12 / 2008
10 / 2009
10 / 2009
National Nutrition Policy
National Plan of Action on Nutrition
Migrate to mam tet
Capacity Building Framework for Food & Nutrition Security ,

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

7. Objectives
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

8. 3 main regions have different undernutrition characteristics
North
34%
Criteria of target areas selection
~87,000 children
Central
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
33%
~107,000 children
South
50%
~74,000 children

9. Organizational Structure
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)

10. Key activities
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

11. Key strategy
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

12. Key strategy (cont.) 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

13. Training Materials developed
Translated and adapted
Family Nutrition Guide
Healthy Harvest
Assessment Tool
Field Programme Management :
Food, Nutrition and Development

14. Publications Training Needs Assessment report
National Multisectoral Capacity-building Plan
(both documents are available in English and Lao)

15. Training Materials 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

16. Challenges 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

17. Lessons Learned 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

18. Lesson Learned (cont.)
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

19. 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

20. Recommendations
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

22. THANK YOU