Young children, adolescent girls, and pregnant and lactating women in rural Niger are at high risk for inadequate intake of multiple micronutrients, especially vitamin A and iron. USAID Advancing Nutrition supports USAID nutrition investments in Niger and the government of Niger to strengthen the health system and community-level platforms and actors, to improve intake of vitamin A and iron through supplementation and healthy diets.

The USAID Advancing Nutrition Niger team conducted a supply chain assessment of iron-folic acid and vitamin A supplements, and formative research on micronutrient intake among women, girls, and young children in Maradi and Zinder regions in 2022. The formative research focused on six priority behaviors. Using the research findings, the team  synthesized the findings while testing a new quality SBC tool titled Using Research to Design a Social and Behavior Change Strategy for Multi-Sectoral Nutrition. The tool helps translate research findings to develop an SBC strategy. In an effort to streamline the process, the team found ways to reduce the number of worksheets typically used by combining two into one.

Using this analysis, USAID Advancing Nutrition collaborated with the Ministry of Public Health in Niger to convene partners in August 2022 to co-create and validate a social and behavior change strategy. In addition to district offices of the Ministry of Public Health, Breakthrough ACTION, and SBC representatives of USAID Resilience in the Sahel Enhanced (RISE) II partners participated, including Girma, USAID Hamzari, USAID Kulawa, USAID Yalwa and Wadata.

The strategy defines how USAID Advancing Nutrition will support national level supplementation activities in Niger and help partners promote the intake of vitamin A and iron through supplements and dietary improvements among women, girls and young children through existing platforms.