Modernizing Extension and Advisory Services

Engaging Extension and Advisory Service Providers in Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture

Part I: Focus on Malawi

Dr. Vickie A. Sigman

Consultant Senior Agricultural Extension Specialist

MEAS, University of Illinois

SPRING-MEAS Webinar Arlington, VA October 29, 2014

1

Part I: Integrating Agriculture and Nutrition in Malawi

● TODAY’S WEBINAR

First in the two-part series

About integrating agriculture and nutrition in Malawi within the agricultural extension and nutrition education context.

Based on findings from a recent assessment, commissioned by USAID/Malawi, of Malawi’s

• agricultural extension, • nutrition education, and • integrated agriculture-nutrition programs and systems.1

2

Malawi Assessment

Purpose: investigate these different programs and systems with the aim of informing the design of an activity to strengthen extension and nutrition outreach services in Malawi’s Feed the Future focus districts.

3

● Team

Assessment

4

● Framework: programs and people: 3 types, 3 sectors ● Methodology: visits, interviews, focus group, review

workshop, literature review

Today’s Presentation

● Key findings: Context Structure and Linkages of Nutrition Delivery Systems

Challenges and Possibilities

5

Context

●Key statistics • 85% of livelihoods from agriculture • Over 50% under the poverty line • 47% of under-fives stunted

●Key policies and initiatives • Agriculture Policies2

• Nutrition Policies3

• Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN)4

• New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition5

6

Overarching Nutrition Structure & Linkages

↕

7

Office of the President and the

Cabinet

Department of Nutrition &

HIV&AIDS (DNHA)

Donors

SUN Task Force Tech Working

Groups National Nutrition

Committee

Private Sector Entities

(business, farmer associations)

Public Sector (ministries,

academe, research)

Civil Society Sector

(NGOs, media)

Ministry Structure & Linkages

MINISTRY Agriculture & Food Security Health

Gender, Children &

Social Welfare DISTRICT-LEVEL Staff Coordination

Nutrition Officer Own Committee

District Nutritionist Own Committee

Com Dev Officer

FIELD-LEVEL Staff

Ag Ext Dev Officer

Health Surveil-lance Agent

Com Dev Ass’t

8

National-Level: DNHA

District-Level : Ministry of Local Government (District Nutrition Coordination Committee)

Private & Civil Society (NGO) Linkages: Participation on committees or working through or with field level staff.

Delivery Systems

How are farmers and farm families being engaged in nutrition-sensitive agriculture and other nutrition-related activities?

9

• Assessment Identifies • Various systems • Department of Agriculture

Extension Services (DAES) • Care Groups • Farmer Organizations • Blended Care Groups/

Farmer Organizations

DAES (Department of Ag Ext Services)

● Public sector system – largest provider of agricultural extension services – has a Food and Nutrition Unit

● Field-staff • Some trained in nutrition (through DAES Food & Nutrition, NGOs,

or SUN) typically in crop diversification; six food groups; food preparation, processing, storage, & preservation, cooking demonstrations; other SUN-developed messages)

• Incorporated as part of their every day work • Collaborate with health field-staff • Engaged by NGOs to implement NGO-funded nutrition-sensitive

agriculture projects, or NGO staff work collaboratively with DAES field staff

10

DAES Methods

● Lead Farmers • Respected farmer, trained by ag extension, voluntarily

extends to others

● Mndandandas • Contiguous fields, best practices, demonstrated by

extensionists and farmers, on different crops

● Model Village

• Various service providers from various sectors, assist in

overall development, village is then a teaching tool

11

Care Groups

● In Malawi: • widely-used by public sector health and NGOs • system adopted by SUN • tested by NGOs implementing USAID activities

● Focus: improving maternal and child health and nutrition ● Characterized: volunteer health educators, neighborhood

groups, behavior change, household level ● Primarily a health and nutrition system; limited agriculture

integration

12

CARE GROUPS NEIGHBOR

GROUPS

COORDINATOR

SUPERVISORS PROMOTERS

Care Group Structure6

13

Diagram referenced in End Note #6.

Farmer Organizations

● Private-sector approach ● Two large apex organizations:

• Farmers Union of Malawi • National Smallholder Farmers’ Association of Malawi

(NASFAM) • Today’s example

14

NASFAM

● Structure

● Paid extension staff

• Field officers work at association level, with lead farmers, DAES staff

● Development entity supports nutrition activities • production and utilization of diversified crops • nutrition education

● Lead Farmers/others receive training • scaled through clubs and out to community

15

Farmers Clubs (10-15

farmers)

Group Action

Centers (10-15 Clubs)

Farmer Associations

(10-15 Group Action

Centers)

Innovation & Productivity

Center (Associations grouped in a

District)

Blended Care Groups / Farmer Organizations

● New system, introduced and tested by USAID/Malawi partner

● Explicit linkages between the two systems: Care Group and Farmer Association.

● Example: Promoters are recruited from NASFAM membership - information flows among groups/clubs

● One example: peanut production for income and home consumption

● Integration driven by both ag & nutrition concerns 16

Challenges and Possibilities

● Personnel and Related Support Issues ● Coordination ● Investments

17

Challenges and Possibilities: Personnel and Related Support Issues

• Coverage • Capacity • Conditions of Service • Incentives

18

Challenges and Possibilities: Coverage

Challenge: Coverage • High-vacancy rates = ratio of 1:2000 to 4000;

difficulties recruiting women • Health Surveillance Agent numbers also low

Possibilities: Coverage • Lead farmers • Improved transportation • More mass media & ICT • Strengthen GOM- NGO coordination • Hire more agents, moderate expectations

19

Challenges and Possibilities: Capacity

Challenge: Capacity • Numerous subjects including nutrition-sensitive ag • Limited refresher training • Not all have participated in nutrition training • Learning aids lacking

Possibilities: Capacity • Peer to peer training • Self-paced learning modules • More ICT • Advocate for increased budget for training

20

Challenges and Possibilities Conditions of Service & Incentives

CONDITIONS OF SERVICE Challenge

• Sub-standard housing & minimal transport

• Lack of communication tools

• Narrow opportunities Possibilities

• Long-term costed plan

21

INCENTIVES Challenge

• Conditions of service and training

• NGO – GOM extension; wide-differences

Possibilities • GOM & NGO develop

standards and protocols

Challenges and Possibilities: Coordination

Challenges: • Many actors • Coordinating structures understaffed; few function effectively • Ministries and entities have own set of coordination

committees • Lack of funds to coordinate at the field level Possibilities • Streamline, realign, merge, the various coordinating

structures and committees • Establish a coordination fund to support field-level

coordination across sectors

22

Challenges: Investments

Challenges: • GOM has numerous priorities and limited funds • Many systems require investment, but particularly

public sector agricultural extension • Resources needed to address challenges

identified • Data to guide investments lacking

23

Possibilities: Investments

Possibilities: • Study cost-benefit of investments in various

systems • Use resources more efficiently • Main contributor is GOM

• Improve DAES capacity to advocate • Some donor contributions to GOM extension;

most bi- and multilateral donors finance NGO-based and private sector extension and advisory services • Given expectations, reconsider trend

24

THANK YOU

25

End Notes

1 Sigman, V., Rhoe, V., Peters, J., Banda, T, & Malindi, G. (2014). Assessment of agricultural extension, nutrition education, and integrated agriculture-nutrition extension services in the Feed the Future focus districts in Malawi. Urbana-Champaign, IL: University of Illinois, MEAS. Available from http://www.meas-extension.org/meas-offers/country_studies/malawi-ii

2 GOM/MOAFS (2011). Malawi agricultural sector wide approach: A prioritized and harmonized Agricultural Development Agenda: 2011-2015. Lilongwe: GOM/MOAFS. Retrieved from ftp://ftp.fao.org/tc/tca/CAADP%20TT/CAADP%20Implementation/CAADP%20Post-Compact/Investment%20Plans/National%20Agricultural%20Investment%20Plans/Malawi%20Post%20Compact%20Investment%20Plan.pdf

3 GOM/DNHA (2009). National nutrition policy and strategic plan (2007-2011). Lilongwe: DNHA. Retrieved from https://extranet.who.int/nutrition/gina/sites/default/files/MWI%202009%20National%20Nutrition%20Policy%20Strategic%20Plan%202009.pdf

4 GOM. (nd). National nutrition education and communication strategy, 2011-2016. Lilongwe: GOM. Retrieved from http://www.dnha.gov.mw/documents/NEC_Strategy_2012.pdf

5 DFID. (2013). Country cooperation framework to support the New Alliance for Food Security & Nutrition in Malawi. Retrieved from https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-new-alliance-for-food-security-and-nutrition-malawi-cooperation-framework

6 Food Security and Nutrition Network Social and Behavioral Change Task Force. (2014). Care groups: A training manual for program design and implementation. Washington, DC: Technical and Operational Performance Support Program. Retrieved from http://www.coregroup.org/resources/462-care-groups-a-training-manual-for-program-design-and-implementation

26

This presentation was given:

By Vickie A. Sigman, on behalf of MEAS

SPRING- MEAS Webinar October 29, 2014

Arlington, VA

Disclaimer:

This presentation was made possible by the generous support of

the American people through the United States Agency for

International Development, USAID. The contents are the

responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the

views of USAID or the United States Government.

www.meas-extension.org