Kenya Nutrition and Health Program plus Quarterly Progress Report July-September 2015

The program's activities during this reporting period focused on recruitment of county technical nutrition officers and drivers, supporting nutrition technical and working forums, harmonizing nutrition guidelines and tools, and improving data capture and reporting at facility level. The program supported the national Nutrition Technical Forum, a learning and exchange multi-stakeholder medium that aimed to strengthen the impact of nutrition programming in Kenya. Programmatic updates were shared on seven program areas, including scaling up Nutrition-SHARE, Nutrition & HIV, Community Health Unit, Emergency Nutrition & Commodity Management, MIYCN, Nutrition in TB, Fortification and Micronutrients, and Research Monitoring & Evaluation. NHPplus provided technical assistance during the review of the MIYCN policy on infant feeding in the context of HIV/AIDS based on new country recommendations. In collaboration with the Nutrition and Dietetics Unit (NDU) and the National AIDS and STI Control Program (NASCOP), the program gave technical leadership in the process of nutrition reporting tools and indicators harmonization, and the content review of all nutrition and HIV materials in line with new ART guidelines and harmonization with the IMAM guidelines. The program also participated in various partners planning and update meetings and conducted site support visits to continuously improve nutrition reporting and data quality. During the quarter, the program supported 48 facilities in electronic data capture, validation, and reporting and initiated data validation and consolidation for DATIM. The NHPplus team participated in the development of a five-minute video produced as part of the advocacy activities for the World Breastfeeding Week. This video will be used to advocate for employers to support breastfeeding in the workplace. The program also participated in the planning and supported printing expenses for promotional materials for the main event that took place at the Michael Joseph Center, Safaricom. The team participated in various conferences, including the Food Fortification Conference organized by NDU-MOH and the Integrated Nutrition Conference by CRS. NHPplus procured fortified blended flours comprising 318 MT of FBF Adults and 159 MT of FBF Children, which will be used to support nutrition interventions in Kenya. The program's efforts aim to improve the nutrition status of Kenyans and contribute to the country's overall development goals. The program's activities are focused on improving access and demand for quality nutrition interventions at facility and community levels. This includes supporting the recruitment of county technical nutrition officers and drivers, as well as harmonizing nutrition guidelines and tools. The program also aims to strengthen nutrition commodities management and improve food and nutrition security. In addition to these activities, the program is working to improve data capture and reporting at facility level. This includes supporting 48 facilities in electronic data capture, validation, and reporting, as well as initiating data validation and consolidation for DATIM. The program's efforts aim to improve the quality and accuracy of nutrition data, which will inform program decisions and contribute to the country's overall development goals. The program's work is also focused on advocacy and awareness-raising activities. The NHPplus team participated in the development of a five-minute video produced as part of the advocacy activities for the World Breastfeeding Week. This video will be used to advocate for employers to support breastfeeding in the workplace. The program also participated in the planning and supported printing expenses for promotional materials for the main event that took place at the Michael Joseph Center, Safaricom. Overall, the Kenya Nutrition and Health Program plus is working to improve the nutrition status of Kenyans through a range of activities focused on improving access and demand for quality nutrition interventions, strengthening nutrition commodities management, and improving food and nutrition security. The program's efforts aim to contribute to the country's overall development goals and improve the health and well-being of Kenyans.