Thumbnail Image

Nutrition-Sensitive Social Protection Programs within Food Systems

Copyright licence

Year of publication 2021

Place of publication Washington, DC, USA ;

Pages 109 p.

Author Olney, D.K.; Gelli, A.; Kumar, N.; Alderman, H.; Go, A.; Raza, A.; Owens, J.; Grinspun, A.; Bhalla, G.; Benammour, O

Publisher FAO ; IFPRI ;

Product type Article

Category Journal article

Edition 1

Synopsis (short abstract) Investments in social assistance programs (SAPs) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are increasing. As investments increase, the objectives of these programs are expanding from focusing on reducing poverty to addressing other social issues such as improving diets and nutrition. At the same time, there is increasing interest in addressing all forms of malnutrition within the framework of food systems. Given the intersections between SAPs and food systems, we reviewed the effectiveness of SAPs (agriculture asset transfers, cash transfers, in-kind transfers, vouchers, public works, and school meals programs) for reducing all forms of malnutrition across the lifecycle within a food systems framework. As several programs included multiple treatment arms, each representing a unique program design, we used study arm as the unit of analysis and assessed the proportion of study arms with positive or negative program impacts on diet and nutrition outcomes among men, women and children. The majority of the studies included in this review were from evaluations of agriculture asset, cash, and in-kind transfer programs. There was clear evidence of positive impacts on women’s and children’s diet-related outcomes. Very few studies assessed program impact on women’s nutritional status outcomes. However, there was some evidence of impacts on increasing body mass index and hemoglobin concentration (Hb) with in-kind transfer programs. Among children, several study arms across the agriculture asset, cash, and in-kind transfer programs found positive impacts on increasing height-for-age Z-score (33%-45% of study arms) and weight-for-height Z-score (33%-50% of study arms) and decreasing the prevalence of wasting (43%-60% of study arms). Cash and in-kind transfer programs also found positive effects on reducing stunting prevalence in 33% and 45% of study arms, respectively. Lastly, a few study arms assessed program impact on increasing Hb with some evidence of positive impacts in in-kind and school feeding programs. There was a paucity of relevant evidence of the effectiveness of voucher and public works programs on diet and nutrition outcomes, for men’s outcomes, and on micronutrient status. Several challenges remain in understanding the potential for SAPs to improve diet and nutrition outcomes within food systems including the heterogeneity of program and evaluation designs, populations targeted by the programs, and included in evaluations and indicators used to assess impact. Addressing these challenges in future evaluations is important for informing program and policy actions to improve the effectiveness of SAPs within food systems for improving diet and nutrition outcomes across the lifecycle.

This is a co-published publication between International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), also available from IFPRI source page.

Last updated date 10/11/2021 (author list has been updated), see corrigendum

Cite this content as:

Olney, D.K.; Gelli, A.; Kumar, N.; Alderman, H.; Go, A.; Raza, A.; Owens, J.; Grinspun, A.; Bhalla, G.; Benammour, O. 2021. Nutrition-Sensitive Social Protection Programs within Food Systems. FPRI Discussion Paper 2044. FAO and IFPRI. Washington DC. https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134593  

Language English

Also available in:
No results found.

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Thumbnail Image
    Book (stand-alone)
    General interest book
    Sustainable and nutrition-sensitive food systems for healthy diets and prevention of malnutrition in Europe and Central Asia 2023
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    This book aims to contribute the knowledge and understanding of nutritional impact of food systems. Focus is also be given to food systems elements status identification, policy analysis to examine potential effects of different policy options throughout the food system, in particular policies in agriculture, food marketing and trade, social protection, gender, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) on food industry, nutrition, and environment and education etc. Good practice and lessons learnt to strengthen the beneficiary countries’ evidence-base for addressing nutrition related challenges from the food system perspective.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet
    Brochure
    BRICS countries investing in partnerships and cooperation for nutrition-sensitive social protection 2017
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    BRICS countries (Brazil, Russian Federation, India, China and South Africa) have taken the lead in recent global policy dialogues on economic, social and environmental issues. They are home to 3.1 billion people, representing 42 percent of the world’s population. Combined, BRICS have achieved the Millennium Development Goal of halving the prevalence of undernourishment by 2015. Building on their experiences in reducing hunger, BRICS countries have also been instrumental in initiating mechanisms of South-South cooperation by supporting and promoting the establishment of nutrition-sensitive social protection systems in other developing countries.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Project
    Factsheet
    Enhancing Regional Capacities to Design and Implement Nutrition-Sensitive Social Protection Programme to Reduce Food Insecurity and Malnutrition - TCP/INT/3701 2021
    Also available in:
    Despite important progress made in the fight against poverty and hunger, significant challenges remain Progress on reducing the incidence of hunger differs from region to region and country to country The four target countries of this project, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Senegal and Zambia, are among those that continue to face persistent poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition In response, they have been experimenting with approaches that seek to link social protection to a variety of sectors, such as agriculture, health and sanitation, with the aim to improve the livelihoods of the poorest and reduce hunger Social protection programmes have proved to be a critical factor in tackling hunger, however, there are important knowledge gaps regarding the operational options of linking them with broader agriculture and Food Security and Nutrition ( interventions, and the results these linkages can achieve As social protection has rapidly expanded in the past two decades, these linkages are yet to be further understood and debated Generating, systematizing and disseminating concrete country knowledge on this approach to nutrition sensitive social protection is therefore an important contribution to national governments and other stakeholders across regions Against this background, the governments of the above mentioned four target countries requested that FAO support them to design and implement improved nutrition sensitive social protection interventions, and to assist them in moving towards more integrated approaches to tackle FSN and reduce poverty.
Show more

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

  • Thumbnail Image
    Project
    Programme / project report
    Appropriate food packaging solutions for developing countries 2011
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    The study was undertaken to serve as a basis for the international congress Save Food!, taking place from 16 to 17 May 2011, at the international packaging industry fair Interpack2011 in Düsseldorf, Germany. Save Food! has been co organized by Interpack2011 and FAO, aiming to raise awareness on global food losses and waste. In addition, Save Food! brings to the attention of the international packaging industry the constraints faced by the small- and medium-scale food processing industries in dev eloping countries to obtain access to adequate packaging materials which are economically feasible.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Book (stand-alone)
    Technical study
    Appropriate food packaging solutions for developing countries 2014
    Also available in:
    The study was undertaken to serve as a basis for the international congress Save Food!, taking place from 16 to 17 May 2011, at the international packaging industry fair Interpack2011 in Düsseldorf, Germany. Save Food! has been co organized by Interpack2011 and FAO, aiming to raise awareness on global food losses and waste. In addition, Save Food! brings to the attention of the international packaging industry the constraints faced by the small- and medium-scale food processing industries in dev eloping countries to obtain access to adequate packaging materials which are economically feasible. This revised edition, dated 2014, contains a new section on investment opportunities in developing countries (paragraph 3.7).
  • Thumbnail Image
    Document
    Bulletin
    Non-Wood News
    An information bulletin on non-wood forest products
    2009
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    Behind the new-look Non-Wood News is the usual wealth of information from the world of NWFPs. The Special Features section covers two different aspects of NWFPs: a specific product (bamboo) and a developing market (cosmetics and beauty care). Bamboo is versatile: it can be transformed, for example, into textiles, charcoal, vinegar, green plastic or paper and can also be used as a food source, a deodorant, an innovative building material and to fuel power stations. Reports indicate that natural c osmetics and beauty care are a huge global market, with forecasts indicating an annual growth of 9 percent through 2008. The Special Feature on Forest cosmetics: NWFP use in the beauty industry builds on this and includes information industry interest and marketing strategies (consumers are being drawn to natural products and thus their content is emphasized). As can be seen from the articles on shea butter in Africa and thanakha in Myanmar, many societies have always used and benefited from nat ural cosmetics. This issue includes other examples of traditional knowledge, such as the uses of the secretions of a poisonous tree frog in Brazil and the use by the traditional healers in India of allelopathic knowledge.
Show more