Standard Project Report 2016
Results / Outcomes
Strategic Objective: Reduce undernutrition and break the intergenerational cycle of hunger( SO4)
Outcome: Increase ownership and strengthen the Ministry of Health’ s capacity to reduce undernutrition through the design, planning and management of the mother and child health and nutrition( MCHN) programme
Activity: Technical assistance
In 2016, the Ministry of Health at both the national and municipal level displayed increasing signs of ownership of the MCHN programme. Several municipalities requested follow-up training, recognising that staff’ s ability to implement the programme could be strengthened. In addition, two municipalities requested training on social and behaviour change communications( SBCC) regarding nutrition, while the national Health Promotion Department requested training of health promotion staff, nutrition focal points, and health volunteers. Health promotion was conducted with the aim of building skills and awareness on the importance of health promotion for nutrition, in order that health facilities in all six municipalities will continue health promotion once the programme closes. One municipality awarded WFP a certificate in recognition of its support to the nutrition programme.
The Government ' s nutrition department strengthened oversight and monitoring of the programme as a result of input from WFP, and requested budget advice when preparing the 2017 programme budget. The national nutrition department also began the recruitment of 50 nutrition specialists to be based in the various municipalities, a development which came just three years after WFP initially hired nutrition focal points to operate at health facilities. While there was a less positive response to the idea of locally-based nutrition specialists, by the end of 2016, 90 percent of the WFP-supported nutrition focal points were funded by the Ministry of Health.
Strategic Objective: Reduce undernutrition and break the intergenerational cycle of hunger( SO4)
Outcome: Moderately malnourished children aged 6-59 months and malnourished pregnant and lactating women have access to supplementary food in sufficient quantity and quality
Activity: Nutrition support
In 2016, the nutrition programme met the Sphere standards for the treatment of moderate acute malnutrition( MAM) in terms of the coverage rate in rural areas— mortality rate( 0.1 percent) and non-response rate( 6 percent). However, the recovery rate of 62 percent was below the recommended minimum standard of 75 percent, and the default rate of 31 percent was above the recommended maximum of 15 percent. Many children did not complete the full course of the treatment because of the poor understanding of caregivers and the general population of the importance of finishing the course of treatment, particularly how undernutrition can impact children ' s growth, in addition to long commutes to health facilities and time spent receiving monthly treatment, as highlighted in WFP ' s household interviews. On average, the programme reached the Sphere target of > 50 percent coverage in rural areas( 51.8 percent on average), but coverage remained below target in Bobonaro, Ermera and Oecusse. The programme in Dili, was the only urban municipality in Timor-Leste, and was close to meeting the Sphere target of > 70 percent coverage( 67.4 percent). The average coverage rate across all six municipalities was 60.7 percent.
However, as a result of delays in the delivery of Timor Vita and Plumpy ' Sup, the number of enrolments in the programme in December decreased, which contributed to the lower annual enrolment rate in 2016. Nevertheless, the distribution of locally produced Super Cereal, Timor Vita, was higher than in 2015, and contributed to the high uptake of services in 2016 as the product was well-known and liked by Timorese women.
There were improvements in some municipalities, such as in Dili, in the first two quarters of 2016, and in Bobonaro, where all Sphere targets for children were achieved for two consecutive months( October and November). Improvements in these municipalities were attributed to a number of activities supported by WFP and the Ministry of Health, including:
• An increase in people receiving nutrition messaging, as a result of community health volunteers and health staff being trained in SBCC by WFP and the health promotion unit.
• An increase in the number of cooking demonstrations conducted with pregnant and lactating women( PLW), which also spread nutrition messaging using SBCC.
• Modelling and practising good nutrition behaviours within communities, particularly around infant and young child feeding practices, through WFP partners ' mother support groups in three municipalities( Dili, Covalima, Oecusse).
• Refresher training held on recording and reporting to improve the quality of data on MAM treatment collected at health facilities.
Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of( TL) 18 Development Project- 200770