Social protection: a pathway for sectorial integration of

nutritionNita Dalmiya

Nutrition SpecialistUNICEF

32nd RPCA Annual Meeting12-14 December, 2016

Outline

• Regional situation of malnutrition

• What is social protection? How can social protection programmes improve nutrition outcomes?

• Challenges and lessons learned in making social protection nutrition-sensitive

• Conclusions and next steps

Deteriorating regional situation: increase in number of stunted children

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Number of children under 5 who are stunted, by region, 1990 to 2014

Source: UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Joint Child Malnutrition Estimates, September 2015 edition*Central Eastern Europe/Commonwealth of Independent States. Due to consecutive lack of any data, results are not displayed for year 1990 (1995 is presented instead); the CEE/CIS region does not include Russia due to missing data; Consecutive low population coverage for the 2014 estimate (interpret with caution).

Persisting inequalities in stunting

Note: Analysis based on a subset of 87 countries with available data by wealth quintile groupings; regional estimates represent data from countries covering at least half of the regional population. Data are from 2008 to 2014, except for Brazil (2006), and India (2005-06). *Excludes China. Source: UNICEF Global Database, 2015

Stunting prevalence is consistently higher among poorer wealth quintilesPercentage of under-fives who are moderately or severely stunted, by wealth quintile and by region, 2014

More than half of all countries in region with underweight women

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Gabon

Sao Tome

Cote d'Iv

oire

Camero

onGhan

aBen

in

Liberia

Maurit

ania

Guinea Mali

Sierra

Leone

Togo

Nigeria

CongoNiger

Burkina F

aso

CARDRC

Seneg

alChad

0

5

10

15

20

25

5 56

8 89 9 9

11 11 11 1112

13 1314

1516

19

23

Perc

ent

Poor situation

Serious situation

Percentage of women with BMI<18,5 in WCAR

Source : Global Nutrition Report, 2014

Cumulative, overlapping vulnerabilities negatively influence malnutrition progress

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Cumulative and overlapping

vulnerabilities

Climate change

Food insecurity

Rapid population growth and

urbanization

Politial instability

and insecurity

Regional nutrition crisis. Multi-factorial causality

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Frequency of violent civil conflict events and people affected by climate, Africa (2000-2014)

WHAT IS SOCIAL PROTECTION? HOW CAN SOCIAL PROTECTION PROGRAMMES IMPROVE NUTRITION?

8

What is social protection?

• Policies and programmes aimed at preventing, reducing and eliminating economic and social vulnerabilities and poverty in order to ensure a minimum standard of dignity and well–being throughout the life–cycle to all individuals , with a particular emphasis towards most disadvantaged groups. Social Protection Inter Agency Board

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Social protection well positioned to improve nutrition outcomes

Source: Nutrition and social protection » FAO 2015

Pillars of a universal Social Protection SystemSocial Transfers:

FoodCash/vouchersCash for work

Programmes to ensure: access to services

School feedingHealth insurance

Social support and care:Empowerment

Legislation and regulation:

Price subsidies(to increase consumption)

Strong evidence base linking social transfers with improved access to nutrition, health and care

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Improved diet quantity, quality, and diversity

Decreased vulnerability to shifting patterns of agriculture and climate

Decreased childhood mortalityHelping children reach their full

potentialStrengthened women’s empowerment

and household investments

Global and regional commitments recognize important role of social protection and nutrition

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CHALLENGES IN MAKING SOCIAL PROTECTION PROGRAMMES NUTRITION SENSITIVE

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Challenges 1. Identifying and reaching the food insecure and nutritionally vulnerable

populations in social protection systems especially in remote areas2. Creating bridge between humanitarian and development

programming:– Difficulties in ensuring responsiveness of SP programmes to certain types of

shocks and crisis (resilience) – Creating linkages between social protection/humanitarian activities and

longer term approaches to livelihoods, resilience, food security and nutrition3. Establishing a single beneficiary register4. Establishing multisectorial approaches:

– Embedding social protection in other sectors and broader development agenda

– Creating institutional mechanisms and coordination within multi-sectorial approach (social protection, health, agriculture, and education), and at different levels

– Ensuring integration of behavior change communication in SP for longer term outcomes

Challenges (continued)

4. Financing– Ensuring adequate financial and human resources, as

well as information systems and logistical arrangements – Implementing progressive taxation and ensuring

predictability of financial streams – Ensuring durability/longevity of projects for sustained

positive effects on food and nutrition security– Ensuring funding for SP programmes to be responsive

in times of crisis (contingency funds)

5. Evaluating impact and building evidence base based on improved programme design and nutrition outcomes

Increasing experiences with social protection and Nutrition in region

MALI

SO

CIA

L P

RO

TEC

TIO

N

PO

LIC

IES

MAURITANIA

BURKINA FASO

SENEGAL

NIGERIA

NIGERSOCIAL PROTECTION POLICY ADOPTED (2011): SOCIAL PROTECTION FLOOR AND DIALOGUE ON FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION (NOV 2016) IMPROVED AND SECURE ACCESS TO DIETARY DIVERSITY THROUGH SOCIAL TRANSFERS AND IMPROVED NUTRITION FOR CHILDREN. SOCIAL TRANSFERS SENSITIVE TO NUTRITION IN THE NEW NATIONAL NUTRITION POLICYSCHOOL FEEDING PROGRAMMES IN VARIOUS STATESCASH AND FOOD INTERVENTIONS IN HUMANITARIAN CONTEXT DRAFT SOCIAL PROTECTION POLICY INCLUDES CASH AND OTHER PROVISIONS FOR NUTRITIONALLY VULNERABLE FAMILIES

SP STRATEGY IN PLACE SINCE 2009 SUPPORTED BY SINGLE REGISTRY. PRIORITIES ARE FOOD SECURITY; ACCESS TO HEALTH AND EDUCATION SERVICES; SOCIAL SECURITY, EMPLOYMENTLIVING ENVIRONMENT; SOCIAL SECURITY AND PROMOTION OF VULNERABLE GROUPS.2013-2022 NATIONAL SOCIAL PROTECTION POLICY. GOVERNMENT HAS ALSO DEVELOPED A NATIONAL NUTRITION PROTOCOL, WHICH INCLUDES THE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF ACUTE MALNUTRITION FOR CHILDREN UNDER 5 AND PREGNANT AND NURSING MOTHERS. NATIONAL SP STRATEGY 2005-2015 IN PLACE- UPDATE ONGOING. OBJECTIVES : EQUAL STRENGTHENING AND EXPANSION, SP TOOLS FOR VULNERABLE GROUPS, PREVENTION TO SHOCKS AND NEGATIVE IMPACTS, INCREASE ACCESS AND USE OF BASIC SOCIAL SERVICES, CONTRIBUTION TO COUNTRY ECONOMIC GROWTH.GOV (&WB) PUT IN PLACE THE JIGISÈMÈJIRI SOCIAL SAFETY NETS PROGRAMME. SUPPORT FROM WB IS COVERING PART OF ONGOING WORK TO CENTRALIZE TARGETING AND ENROLLMENT OF SP BENEFICIARIES IN A SINGLE REGISTRY.

Advocate for integration of nutrition, gender, food security, and health in long-term social protection programmes, interventions, and legislation

Coordinate with other sectors, including health, nutrition but also agriculture/ productive activities

Support social protection programmes in achieving nutrition objectives

Expand social protection interventions to ensure adequate coverage of nutritionally vulnerable

Ensure that social protection programmes are shock responsive in order to adjust to crisis in terms of both coverage as well as benefit size

Use variety of nutrition indicators (including sensitive) to monitor and assess effectiveness of social protection

Conclusions and next steps National leadership: act to ensure necessary integration between social protection and nutrition programmes

Panel 1 : Links between social protection and nutrition

Panel 2 : Success stories and innovative experiences

Panel 3 : Sustainable financing of social protection policies

19Thank you!