The Transform Nutrition project, funded by USAID and implemented by a consortium led by ADPP Mozambique, recently held its 6th Steering Committee meeting in the city of Nampula. This committee functions as a high-level advisory board set up to discuss the implementation of the project. Its main objective is to link the project to the Government of Mozambique's multi-sectoral health and nutrition sector, to USAID-Mozambique's development cooperation programme and to related political decision-making.
The meeting was chaired by the representative of the Nampula Provincial Director of Health, Mr Bertino Baptista, and was attended by various authorities and technicians, including the representative of the Ministry of Health's Nutrition Department, focal point for the Nutrition Interventions Package; the representative of the Polyvalent Health Agents Programme; Director of the Food and Nutrition Security Promotion Department of SENTSAN-Central, focal point of the Provincial SETSAN; Technicians from the Provincial Health Service; Technician from the Provincial Public Works Directorate; Technician from the Provincial Economic Activities Service; Consortium partners, including H2N, GAIN and Lúrio University.
During the meeting, the project presented the approaches used to influence social change and the behaviour of its target audience, made up of pregnant/lactating women, children under 2 and adolescent girls. The challenges faced, the adaptations made and the strategy for sustaining the interventions were also discussed.
In their intervention, the representatives of the Mozambican government unanimously recognised Transform Nutrition's contribution to improving the nutritional status of the target population and encouraged the continuation of gender initiatives in Nampula province.