OVERVIEW

The IHSAN project improves the nutritional status of women of reproductive age and children younger than 5 years of age, focusing on the children’s first 1,000 days (conception to 24 months of age). The expected outcomes of IHSAN are to decrease stunting by at least 5 percent over five years, and to reduce anemia among women of reproductive age by at least 10 percent. The objectives are: 1) increasing the government’s capacity to institutionalize nutrition programs, 2) advancing the adoption of optimal nutrition and hygiene behaviors at community and household levels, and 3) improving the availability of nutrition, hygiene, and sanitation services.

ACTIVITIES

• Work with national and local communities, NGOs, nutrition education institutions, and the private sector to ensure host-country ownership and sustainability for nutrition policies and frameworks.
• Tailor strategies and activities to address barriers for optimal nutrition for lactating and pregnant women and children under 2 years old in rural and urban areas
• Outreach and broad engagement of the larger community in support of increasing women’s decision-making in family nutrition
• Develop strong partnerships with the private sector to bolster the adoption of scientific and low-cost technological advances that promote hygiene, sanitation, and improved nutrition outcomes for pregnant women, infants, and young children
• Support evidence-based best practices that link hygiene and sanitation activities with nutrition activities to decrease stunting

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

As of April 2019;

• A total of 46,817 out of 52,759 people (88 percent of annual target) had been trained in WASH nutrition livelihood and management issues.
• IHSAN supported access to facility and community-based nutrition services by pregnant women and young children and education of women on WASH and nutrition.
• Reached 1,016,370 women, 298,470 pregnant women, 1,774,504 children under 5 and 362,216 children younger than 2 years old
• In order to improve access to basic sanitation services, IHSAN implements the government Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach and by end of April the project has verified 1,523 out of 2,264 communities as Open Defecation Free (ODF) which has helped 637,869 (67% of the annual target) people gain access to basic sanitation services.
• IHSAN provided training on livelihood interventions and toolkits to 475 men and 575 women, enabling them to grow nutritious food for their own consumption or selling at the local market.
• Supported the Afghanistan Food Security and Nutrition (AFSeN) Technical Secretariat by:
  • Developing the first Food Security and Nutrition Public Awareness and Advocacy Framework and Plan 2018 – 2023
  • Establishing six provincial AFSeN committees
  • Aiding the AFSeN Technical Secretariat to conduct a workshop on the Global Nutrition Report 2018 Findings Review
• Finalized the e-learning platform, a source of training materials, and an in-service training mechanism for frontline service providers
• Supported households to upgrade, improve or construct 94,638 new latrines and provided access to basic sanitation facilities for 857,332 people in fiscal 2018.
• Trained 818 women in kitchen gardening, raising poultry, and Farmers Field Schools (FFS); trained 582 men on FFS and raising poultry and provided 1,300 families with assets and toolkits to grow their own vegetables and other nutritious crops in fiscal 2018.