USAID Laos NIN Apr-Sep 2019 Semi-annual Report

The initiative aimed to support the establishment of the NIN within the Ministry of Health (MOH) and strengthen its capacity to address nutrition-related issues. Key activities during the second half of 2019 included revising the NIN Terms of Reference (TOR) and accompanying proposal to request approval of the NIN's establishment. RTI International, the implementing partner, facilitated the revision of the NIN TOR through a workshop with the MOH in May 2019. The revised TOR was pending approval from the MOH's Department of Personnel (DOP) due to outstanding approval of the Nutrition Center (NC) TOR. In parallel, RTI worked closely with the NC to adapt the organizational assessment to the NC context and added questions related to gender equity and social inclusion, as per USAID guidance and best practices. The Participatory Local Capacity Assessment (PLOCA) tool was divided into two parts: one to assess the current NC strengths and challenges and the second to examine the future NIN's priorities for capacity development. RTI conducted the NC/future NIN capacity assessment from August through September 2019 and submitted the draft capacity assessment report to USAID and NC for comments on September 30, 2019. The Lao-American Nutrition Initiative (LANI) TOR was also drafted by RTI, and the NC was assisted in revising the LANI Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) and TOR to be signed by the Minister of Health. The finalized LANI MOA/TOR was signed by the Minister of Health and provided to USAID during the USAID-MOH meeting on October 2, 2019. RTI also supported the NC in submitting a final list of priority equipment needed for the NIN to USAID, which was forwarded for submission/approval to the US Department of Defense (DOD). The USAID Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) informed RTI about an opportunity for the DOD to provide equipment support to the NIN/LANI, and RTI supported the NC in providing a list of high-priority equipment for the NIN with a value up to [REDACTED]. Throughout the reporting period, RTI's consultants frequently engaged with the NC Director, Deputy Directors, and the head of the NC Administration and Finance section to prepare for the TOR revision workshop and the capacity assessment. The RTI team also assisted the NC in revising the LANI MOA, which was signed by the Minister of Health and handed over to the USAID COR two days after the reporting period ended. The USAID COR also informed RTI that there was an opportunity for the DOD to provide equipment support to the NIN/LANI. RTI supported the NC to provide USAID with a list of high-priority equipment for the NIN with a value up to [REDACTED]. The NC Director submitted the final list to USAID in August 2019. The study visit to Vietnam, completed in February 2019, provided lessons learned that were applied in revising the NIN TOR during this period. The lessons learned from the study visit were used to inform the development of the NIN TOR and the capacity assessment tool. The NIN Organizational and Capacity Strengthening initiative made progress against key Task Order deliverables during the reporting period, despite factors beyond RTI's control that delayed activities in Quarter Three. The team focused on revising the Lao NIN TOR and accompanying proposal to request approval of the NIN's establishment, drafting the LANI TOR, and assisting the NC in revising the LANI MOA and TOR.