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Food and nutrition security
and livelihoods
support in hyperendemic
areas
Fadzai Mukonoweshuro
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Mexico
August 2008
Context
Southern Africa (Swa, Zim, Bots, Moz, Les, SA)
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Home to 60% of PLHIV
Agriculture-dependant livelihoods
Protracted food insecurity since 2002
Nutrition insecurity
Interventions
• Food aid
• Community and HH gardens
• Nutrition education and
communication
• Small livestock
• Food production (diversified)
• Collective Labour action
• Social protection - Cash
transfers
• Life skills
• Nutrition counselling and care
• Extension, advisory services
& input support
• HIV strategies for the
agriculture sector
Strengths in HIV context
• Provide immediate support to
avert starvation and malnutrition
• Improved household nutrition
through dietary diversification
• Improved behavior and eating
patterns
• Asset protection
• Generate income
• Provide safety nets
• Less labour intensive
• Increased knowledge and skills
for OVC and youths
Availability
Access
Utilization
Effectiveness and
appropriateness of
interventions
• Protect, prevent and promote livelihoods of targeted households
• Accessible, predictable, affordable, guaranteed and unconditional
HOW
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Target food insecure and nutritionally at risk
Integrated interventions e.g. water and sanitation and livelihoods
Supported by Institutional frameworks
Are gender sensitive
Build on community responses
Challenges
• Food and nutrition insecurity is highly political and decisions on kind of
interventions may be political
• Some targeting criteria increase stigma
• Lack of clear exit strategies
• Quantities distributed often inadequate
• Food aid and agricultural inputs dominate responses – little extension
support
• Cash transfers only work in stable economies
• Designing implementation methods that will translate into a reduction
in hunger in Southern Africa
• Water
Lessons learnt
• Understanding of the livelihoods of people and their needs
is key
• Interventions to be based on specific contextual
environment according to assets, opportunities and
aspirations of target – water is key
• Quality of implementation is important for success
• Short emergency - little on no impact
• Partnerships between agriculture, health and social welfare
crucial
• Strong policy framework required to support interventions
• Cost-effective solutions still a challenge
• Inheritance regarding productive assets – education critical
Recommendations
• Support and build on existing livelihood strategies
• Target attitudes and knowledge regarding food and nutrition security
options
• Targeting – Better to target food insecure and nutritionally at risk rather
than HIV affected
• Link emergency relief (food or emergency cash transfers) with
development relief (including social protection)
• Create the right policies in agriculture to help farmers grow more food
• Document and apply lessons learnt in conducting multi-sectoral
interventions – setting up of observatories
• Roll out the joint FAO/WHO training course for primary care-givers on
the nutritional care and support of PLHIV
• Catch them young- Life skills projects to be expanded
Thank You
[email protected]