WFP Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific - 2016 SPRs RBB 2016 SPRs by project type | Page 24

Standard Project Report 2016
Besides food assistance , the USDA McGovern-Dole project also delivered quality education support for the schools . From the baseline report in June 2015 to the outcome study in September 2016 , a small , not significant increase in literacy was observed ( from 26 to 27.4 percent considered fluent ), as well as improvements in student attentiveness and teachers ’ and school administrators ’ use of quality techniques .
Outcome data showed that the average annual rate of change for children enrolled in WFP-assisted primary schools was above the target . However , it decreased from 2015 because of a verification exercise of the enrolment lists that corrected some issues with the previous years ’ data . Because of funding constraints , WFP was not able to conduct an outcome survey in 2016 that would have provided retention rate data .
While the attendance rate in WFP-assisted primary schools was still slightly below the target , there was a small increase from 2015 , most likely as a result of the increased number of WFP-assisted schools . Since floods led to unanticipated school closures , WFP was slightly below its targeted 240 school feeding days .
During the year , WFP provided a range of technical assistance to the Government , in the form of staff training on implementation , monitoring , reporting , commodity tracking and supply-chain management ; progress review meetings , interagency technical committee meetings , quarterly non-governmental organization ( NGO ) coordination meetings , project implementation committee meetings ; and on-site technical assistance . In addition to continued technical support to the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education , WFP facilitated four divisional level multi-stakeholder consultation workshops to inform the formulation of the national school feeding policy . However , the overall technical assistance provided was lower than planned as the result of 15 gender awareness and computer database training sessions being shifted to 2017 , in order to comprehensively engage government staff and also as a result of the absence of database staff .
The Systems Approach for Better Education Results ( SABER ) stakeholder workshop was introduced to identify gaps in national institutions to implement school feeding activities and to complement the preparation of the national school feeding policy . SABER revealed an emerging stage for policy framework , financial capacity , programme design and implementation . The National Capacity Index for 2016 was estimated based on the SABER exercise .
Component 3 : Enhancing resilience to natural disasters and the effects of climate change ( ER / ER +).
Strategic Objective 3 : Reduce risk and enable people , communities and countries to meet their own food and nutrition needs .
Outcome : Improved access to livelihood assets has contributed to enhanced resilience and reduced risks from disaster and shocks faced by targeted food-insecure communities and households .
In 2016 , ER was largely implemented using government resources while WFP assistance was limited to awareness raising and advising on income-generating activities ( IGA ) for ER + participants . All assets created ( through food and cash for assets ) were financed by the Government and are therefore not reported against the community asset score . As a result of funding constraints , the programme did not include capacity development of the Government during 2016 , which is why no data were provided for the National Capacity Index indicators .
Under ER +, WFP resources were provided for promotional livelihood support , including asset grants and IGA support to 5,000 participants in Sirajganj and Satkhira districts . Food security data collected for the asset grant participants showed that the programme has achieved the target to ensure acceptable food consumption for at least 80 percent of the households . However , diet diversity was still slightly below target . It was also reported that participants were less inclined than in previous years to engage in negative coping strategies — specifically , the sale of household assets and assets with income-generating potential ( like sewing machines and rickshaws ), though the household survey data was not robust enough to generate a Coping Strategies Index .
Under the ER component , WFP also responded to natural disasters with the delivery of cash and food support to stabilise the food security of cyclone- and flood-affected populations in disaster-prone regions of the country . Emergency distributions through this intervention were responsible for the over-achievement of beneficiaries under ER . The outcome monitoring data on the emergency responses ( as seen in the section labelled ‘ project specific ’) estimated that the Food Consumption Score and Dietary Diversity were met .
Component 4 : Strengthening government safety nets . Strategic Objective 4 : Reduce undernutrition and break the intergenerational cycle of hunger .
Outcome : Ownership and capacity strengthened to reduce undernutrition and increase access to education at regional , national and community levels .
WFP facilitated a capacity gaps and needs assessment workshop with central and field level government officials to systematically identify the gaps , needs and opportunities . The exercise revealed strong national capacity in terms of relevant policy and funding . The institutional capacity of the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs to implement the Vulnerable Group Development ( VGD ) programme was found to be moderate in terms of programme design ,
Bangladesh , People ' s Republic of ( BD ) 21 Country Programme - 200243