Project Background:
SPRING’s work in Bangladesh centers around the use of the 1,000 days approach across different sectors, including health and agriculture, to facilitate social and behavior change with the goal of preventing stunting in young children.
Bangladesh has among the highest prevalence of under nutrition in the world. Nearly 50% of children under the age of 5 and three out of every ten women of childbearing age suffer from under nutrition. Regardless of socio-economic status, millions of children and women in Bangladesh suffer from one or more forms of malnutrition, including low birth weight, wasting, stunting, vitamin A deficiency, iodine deficiency or iron deficiency anemia. According to 2011 DHS data, Bangladesh has a 41% stunting rate for children <5, 36% underweight for children <5, 50% of pregnant women are anemic and 40% of non-pregnant women are anemic.
SPRING activities are focused on promoting essential nutrition and hygiene actions (ENHA) and the consumption of nutritious and diverse diets for pregnant and lactating women and children under two. Considering the above situation Dak Diye Jai as an implementing partner NGO has been implementing this project since October 2012 in Khulna and Bagerhat districts with funding support of USAID through Save the Children International (SCI).
Duration: 16 October 2012 to 15 April 2015
Area Coverage:
The working area of the project is six upazilas (i.e. Rupsha, Terokhada, Digholia, Phultala, Dumuria and Paikgacha) of Khulna district and 6 upazilas (i.e. Kachua, Chitalmari, Morrelgonj, Bagerhat Sadar, Fakirhat and Mollahat) of Bagerhat district.
Source of Funding: USAID through Save the Children International (SCI).
Project Goal:
Improve nutritional status of women and children in order to decrease the prevalence of stunting among children in Barisal and Khulna divisions between 2011 and 2016 through increasing knowledge on nutrition and hygiene (ENA/EHA) and increasing access to nutritious foods (HFP).
Objectives of the Project:
- Integrate and scale up ENHA within the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW), Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) and health and agriculture projects in Barisal and Khulna divisions;
- Enhance the capacity of frontline health and agriculture workers within the MOHFW, the MOA, field facilitators, peer facilitators and community groups to deliver quality counseling on ENHA for pregnant and lactating women and children under the age of two years in Khulna and Barisal;
- Increase household access and utilization of diversified foods through homestead food production.
Project Participants:
Households with pregnant and lactating women and Households with children under two years.