USAID SUN TA 72061119C00002 Quarterly Progress Report April 1 – June 30, 2021

Agency for International Development (USAID) to reduce stunting among children under two years of age in Zambia. The project is implemented in 13 selected districts of Central, Copperbelt, Luapula, and Northern Provinces. The project targets women of reproductive age 15-49 with at least one child under two years of age, pregnant women, and the SUN Program's most vulnerable households. The project has two main objectives: to ensure adequate quantity and quality of dietary intake among target groups and to provide adequate health conditions for biological utilization of nutrients. To achieve these objectives, the project provides technical assistance and direct implementation support to sub-national local government departments and staff in the selected districts. The project focuses on increasing access to and availability of safe, diverse, nutritious food; encouraging the adoption of better child feeding and household hygiene practices; and increasing access and use of improved health, water, and sanitation services. During the second quarter of 2021, the project made significant progress under each component and in all 13 target districts. The Agriculture and Livelihoods component continued to increase access to diverse, nutritious vegetables and biofortified crops and markets, while also supporting agriculture financing and increased access to finance through savings groups. The project established 298 new vegetable gardens to give mothers increased access to nutritious vegetables/crops during their visits to health facilities. The project also held 26 field days across the 13 districts to showcase produce and share learning among farmers. Seed companies and agro-dealers took advantage of the events to engage with farmers and sell their products. The project verified 1,065 hectares are under improved management practices with USG assistance, bringing the cumulative result to 1,713 hectares. The value of agriculture-related financing accessed as a result of USG assistance came to ZMW 979,580 in Q2 2021, surpassing the annual target of ZMW 400,000 and inching closer to the life of project target of ZMW1,000,000. Access to finance and cumulative savings grew through the number of established Community Savings and Loan Groups (CSLGs) and enterprises, bringing the total amount saved year-to-date to over ZMW 8 million. The project established 316 new CSLGs during the second quarter, bringing in more women and youth to benefit from productive resources key to improving their household income and livelihoods. Private sector engagement expanded with Good Nature Agro (GNA) bringing onboard more soybean buyers. With SUN TA encouraging farmers to adopt a good credit culture, soybean farmers who benefitted from GNA financing have responded positively in loan repayment with nearly 70 percent of the loans repaid by the end of the quarter. The project also reported yield increases from one metric ton per hectare (MT/ha) to 1.4 MT/ha in districts with GNA support while the other districts remained at 1 MT/ha. This has been largely attributed to the project's efforts in promoting good agricultural practices and providing farmers with access to improved seeds and fertilizers. The project's progress in increasing access to finance, improving agricultural productivity, and promoting private sector engagement is expected to contribute to the reduction of stunting among children under two years of age in Zambia. The project's Agriculture and Livelihoods component continued to support the development of Community-Based Volunteers (CBVs) and Community Champions (CCs) to promote and support the adoption of improved agricultural practices among farmers. The project also continued to support the establishment of Village Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Education (V-WASHE) groups to promote improved water, sanitation, and hygiene practices among communities. The project's Nutrition and Health component continued to support the implementation of the Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) program, which aims to improve the nutritional status of children under two years of age. The project also continued to support the implementation of the 1,000 Most Critical Days Program II (MCDP II), which aims to improve the nutritional status of pregnant and lactating women and children under two years of age. The project's Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) component continued to support the implementation of the Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) program, which aims to improve the sanitation status of communities. The project also continued to support the implementation of the District Water Sanitation and Health Education (D-WASHE) program, which aims to improve the water, sanitation, and hygiene status of communities. The project's Cross-Cutting component continued to support the implementation of the Social and Behavior Change (SBC) program, which aims to promote behavior change among communities to improve their health and nutrition status. The project also continued to support the implementation of the SUN Mothers Support Groups (SMSG) program, which aims to support the development of mothers' groups to promote improved nutrition and health practices among children under two years of age. The project's Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning