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child feeding practices. The
support of supervisors from
an equally broad range of
disciplines has been crucial to
build students’ competencies
in interdisciplinary, participa-
tory research methodologies
and science communication —
as demonstrated by our
growing list of publications.
With best wishes for the
holiday season and a very
Happy New Year. We look
forward to working with you in
2018 and welcome you to
participate in our Nkuku4U
project conference in Dar es
Salaam on 11-12 July 2018.
Editor
Professor Robyn Alders
Nkuku4U Project Leader
The University of Sydney, Australia
Hello and welcome to our fifth
newsletter. Our interdiscipli-
nary project team is bound
together by two key aims:
firstly, to reduce childhood
undernutrition by enhancing
the key role that women play
in improving poultry and crop
integration and efficiency
to strengthen household
nutrition; and secondly, to
assess how strategic invest-
ments in agriculture and
livestock can best contribute
positively to human health
and, by so doing, encourage
strategic investments by
national Ministries of Finance
and donor agencies.
Ensuring optimal human
nutrition, especially for
vulnerable groups including
infants, young children and
women of reproductive age, is
a complex challenge requiring
multisectoral and inter-
disciplinary coordination. The
role of our Project Country
Coordinating Committees in
bringing multiple sectors and
disciplines together within
each country has been vital to
the effective implementation
of project activities and the
validation of project findings
to date.
Diligent and high quality
contributions by research
students from a wide range of
disciplines, universities and
countries have been a strong
feature since project incep-
tion. To date 30 research
students (26 of them women;
3 PhD, 15 Masters, 3 Doctor
of Veterinary Medicine, 7
Honours, 1 BSc (Veterinary), 1
post-doctoral researcher) have
improved our understanding
of factors in f luencing
household food and nutrition
security.
Student research topics have
ranged from a sociological
investigation of ―women’s
spaces of empowerment‖ in
relation to poultry-raising, to
changing dietary diversity
patterns across the seasons
in Zambia, to food safety
issues, to infant and young
Strengthening food and nutrition security through family
poultry and crop integration in Tanzania and Zambia
Included in this edition:
7th Project Coordinating
Committee (PCC) Meeting
Project updates from
Tanzania & Zambia
Research student updates
from Tanzania & Australia
Project participation in the
International Conference
on Global Food Security
Nkuku4U team members
on the radio in Tanzania
Rose from Mpandagani
village: A case study
Upcoming events
Recent publications
PROJECT NEWSLETTER
Left Participants at the PCC meeting, with representatives from across sectors and countries.
(Back row, from left): Said Komba, Godfrey Magoke, Zakia Ibrahim, Brigitte Bagnol, Asiatu
Mbwambo, Leila Robin, Grace Moshi, Julia de Bruyn, Msafiri Kalloka, Edson Kileo, Deorinidei
Mng’ong’o, Ngatho Mugo, Elpidius Rukambile, Elizabeth Lyimo. (Front row, from left): Wende
Maulaga, Francis Mulenga, Joseph Masambu, Elasto Zulu and Robyn Alders.
8th Project Coordinating Committee Meeting 7-8 December 2017, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
As the project approaches its final
year of implementation in 2018,
discussions at the second of two PCC
meetings for 2017 centred on:
Reviewing progress towards
monitoring and evaluation targets;
Reflecting on findings from
postgraduate students’ analyses;
Discussing plans for increasing
data integration across research
tools through a dedicated Small
Research Activity to be funded by
ACIAR in 2018;
Finalising interdisciplinary
extension materials with the
―Healthy Plants, Healthy Poultry,
Healthy People‖ flipchart;
Developing workplans for 2018;
Beginning preparations for an
end-of-project conference to be
held in Dar es Salaam in July
2018.
In supporting household food supply, village chickens have become a
major contributor to many families in the project areas in Tanzania.
Analysis has shown an overlap between times of food shortage and
chicken sales. Recent focus group discussions in Iwondo and Majiri
Wards indicate chicken and egg consumption to have increased in
households with more resources, while in poorer households chickens
are more likely to be sold.
Those with greater resources were likely to exchange chickens for
household items such as kitchen implements or agricultural tools,
while resource-poor households exchanged chickens to obtain food.
This shows chickens are contributing to livelihood strategies in these
communities.
Some confusion about the continuing presence of conditions other
than Newcastle disease (ND) in chickens have reduced farmers’
willingness to vaccinate against ND. Recent samples from chickens
showing signs of illness identified problems with vitamin A deficiency,
worms and fever. Feedback was given to the community and there is a
need for further work to educate community members about these
conditions and their management.
Improved crop varieties with shorter growth periods and increased
drought tolerance have supported crop production despite the poor
rainfall. Participating households have been impressed by the results
of ―Good Agricultural Practices‖ (e.g. spacing, thinning and gap-filling
of plants) on small areas of land, however adoption on larger areas
has been limited at this stage.
A high-level meeting was held with the Manyoni District Council in
November to share research findings and updates on implementation.
The initial response has been positive, and there are plans for a follow-
up meeting to allow further discussion.
TANZANIA Wende Maulaga Tanzania Veterinary Laboratory Agency
Newcastle disease vaccination has continued in all
of the four clusters in Bundabunda Ward, and is now
also underway in two of the four clusters in
Chintimbwi Ward. According to the project protocol,
there is a twelve-month delay between vaccination in
two ―immediate intervention‖ and two ―delayed inter-
vention‖ (control) clusters in each ward location.
Crop activities commenced in Bundabunda Ward in
March 2017 with the establishment of demon-
stration plots following a meeting with traditional
leaders. This appears to have progressed well and
the irrigated crops (impwa, okra, beans and
amaranth) are now at maturity stage.
In the recent past various changes have been
recommended by the Zambian Country Coordinating
Committee, together with the Project Leader. To
accommodate resource and time constraints, plans
have been made to streamline research activities in
the remaining twelve months of the project.
A census, random selection of households and
administration of baseline data collection tools,
including livelihood and mother and child health and
nutrition questionnaires will be repeated in both
Bundabunda and Chintimbwi wards in 2018. Various
changes have been proposed to reduce the length of
questionnaires to focus on core data collection.
ZAMBIA Elasto Zulu (on behalf of Hilda Lumbwe)
Department of Veterinary Services
Updates from our Country Coordinators
Photos from the field...
Clockwise from top left: (1) A chicken trader loads birds onto his motorbike in Iwondo Ward, Tanzania; (2) Newly-trained chicken
vaccinators in Bundabunda Ward, Zambia; (3) Project Research Officer Elasto Zulu (left) with community leaders in Chintimbwi
Ward, Zambia for random selection of intervention communities; (4) Members of Manyoni District Council, Tanzania listening to
current research findings from Sanza and Majiri Wards, Tanzania.
STUDENT PROJECT UPDATES
From Tanzania and Australia
Name: Helaina Alati
Institution: University of Sydney,
Australia
Degree: Bachelor of Animal and
Veterinary Bioscience (Hons)
For my Honours project, I worked with
questionnaire data collected in
November 2016 in Majiri Ward, Manyoni
District in central Tanzania. The objective of my cross-sectional
study was to assess the relationship between animal owner-
ship, crop diversity and height-for-age in children in this area.
Children’s height-for-age Z-scores (HAZ) were mapped
according to the location of their household, to allow geospatial
patterns in child stunting to be evaluated. No obvious patterns
in distribution of stunting within the project area were found.
Multivariable analysis using a linear regression model
identified a suggestive association between HAZ (as a measure
of children’s long-term nutritional status) and chicken
ownership, child age and crop diversity. Descriptive statistics
and observations in the field revealed many differences
according to language group, with the Sukuma language group
owning significantly more livestock and growing a more diverse
range of crops.
While limited by its cross-sectional nature, this study has
revealed some interesting preliminary findings about the role of
language group, chicken ownership and crop diversity in relation
to children’s growth which can be more deeply explored in the
Nkuku4U study.
“This study has revealed some interesting preliminary
findings about the role of language group, chicken ownership
and crop diversity in relation to children’s growth.”
Name: Deorinidei Mng’ong’o
Institution: Sokoine University of
Agriculture, Tanzania
Degree: Master of Science
(Human Nutrition)
This year I was awarded my Master of
Science degree in Human Nutrition,
which included a research dissertation
based on a longitudinal study on the “Effects of complementary
foods on the growth pattern of children under the age of five
years in Majiri Ward, Manyoni District”.
My study found that plant-based protein was the most common
source of protein in the complementary foods given to young
children. Introducing complementary foods to children at an
earlier age (1-3 months) increased the odds of becoming
undernourished, compared to commencing complementary
foods at later ages (more than six months).
It was concluded from this study that timing of complementary
feeding and dietary diversity were not the only major factors
determining undernutrition. Other factors such as maternal age,
education level and socio-demographic factors were also found
to have a strong influence on children’s nutritional status.
Nutrition during childhood is very important because the effects
of poor nutrition during this period often cannot be reversed
(such as stunting). There is a need for effective nutritional
messaging to guide mothers on the proper timing of complemen-
tary feeding and the importance of dietary diversity to support
growth and development.
“There is a need for effective nutritional messaging to guide
mothers on the timing of complementary feeding and the
importance of dietary diversity.”
Members of the Nkuku4U project team
attended the recent International Global
Food Security in Cape Town. This was
an exciting event involving delegates
from around the world, mainly scientists
and researchers, who convened to
share knowledge and expertise and to
discuss challenges and proposed
solutions to the ultimate goal of having
enough food to nourish the expanding
global population in a sustainable way.
Elements of food security addressed by
the conference included availability,
access, nutrition, safety, sanitation,
stability and the environment. Posters
and presentations addressed the
expected impact of population growth
on food security through effects on:
Urbanisation
Deforestation and desertification
Environmental pollution
Scarcity & declining quality of water
Food shortages, waste and losses,
Poverty and inequality
Unemployment
Political instability
Health care, housing and education
Sanitation.
These challenges require a cross-cutting
approach which responds to global
trends with local solutions. The social
dynamics of food insecurity, including
gender issues, and the technological
innovation required to create positive
changes was therefore at the core of
the conference.
Conference delegates came from the
fields of crop and horticultural food
agriculture, animal science and produc-
tion, aquaculture, public health and
nutrition, and agronomy.
Project leader Robyn Alders gave a
plenary session on the socioeconomic
complexities of food and nutrition
security, highlighting the influence of
domestic pets on household food
security in many settings.
Elpidius Rukambile delivered an oral
presentation sharing preliminary
findings from his research into linkages
between village chickens and child
diarrhoea, which combines data from
questionnaires, interviews and focus group
discussions in a mixed methods approach.
Godfrey Magoke’s poster on aflatoxin
contamination of stored grains in the project
sites in Manyoni District, Tanzania was
shortlisted as one of the best posters of the
conference.
3rd International Conference on Global Food Security 3-6 December 2017, Cape Town, South Africa Godfrey Magoke PhD candidate
Above (from left): Professor Robyn Alders,
Tanzanian Country Coordinator Wende
Maulaga and Tanzanian PhD candidates
Godfrey Magoke and Elpidius Rukambile.
―My name is Rose, I was born in
1967 and I am 50 years old. I divorced
in 2011 and I have six children. My first
child was born in 1988, the last was born in
2010. We all live together, but my firstborn got
married and is not staying with me.
I have 16 chickens. I started raising chickens
after I divorced because I did not have any
resources, so I thought maybe I could have
chickens. I bought one hen from my neighbour.
I paid 2000 TSh (i.e. less than 1 USD), it was
very small.
I had no goat and no cow. And now I have
exchanged six chickens for one goat and she
had a baby. But the kid of the goat died, so I
still keep one. I sold two chickens this year. On
Saturday, when the children are not going to
school, they help me.
I keep the chickens as a buffer. When there is
a shortage of something you can sell. My
objective is to have a big flock of ten goats.
And with ten goats I can exchange and get a
cow. With the chickens, I do not have a plan. I
just keep them and sell them. I vaccinated
every time: nine times (i.e. in all of the
Newcastle disease vaccination campaigns in
Mpandagani village).‖
As told to Brigitte Bagnol
in Mpandagani Village, December 2017
NKUKU4U ON THE RADIO
Representatives from veterinary,
crop and human nutr ition
components of the Nkuku4U team
in Tanzania were invited to
contribute to a weekly radio
program, to discuss integrated
approaches to enhancing food and
nutrition security. The program was
broadcast on Radio Maria, a
Catholic radio station available in
14 regions in Tanzania (including
Singida Region, where two of the
project wards are located).
Project Research Officer Msafiri
Kalloka (from Tanzania Veterinary
Laboratory Agency) discussed the
potential contributions of village
chicken production to family food
and nutrition security, through the
sale and consumption of chicken
meat and eggs. Topics included
reasons to keep chickens, advice
for those considering taking up
poultry-keeping, and
guidance on chicken
breeds, vaccination,
nutr it ion and
husbandry.
Contact Information
Newsletter contributions are always welcome! Our sixth edition will be released in June 2018. Please share any articles, photos or suggestions for content by 1 May 2018.
29 January - 10 February 2018
Food & Health Winter School in
Padova, Italy. Jointly organised by the
University of Padova and the University
of Sydney for undergraduate and
postgraduate students.
unipd.it/en/food-health-winter-school
Early-mid May 2018
9th Project Coordinating Committee
Meeting for the Nkuku4U project.
29-31 May 2018
Annual Meeting of Planetary Health
Alliance in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Deadline for abstract submission is 5
January 2018, and 30 December 2017
for travel scholarship applications.
planetaryhealthannualmeeting.org/
25-29 June 2018
Agriculture, Nutrition and Health
Academy Week in Accra, Ghana.
Deadline for abstract submission is
11 February 2018.
anh-academy.org/anh2018-save-date
11-12 July 2018
Nkuku4U Project Conference in Dar es
Salaam, Tanzania. Details forthcoming.
Upcoming Events
For more information, please contact:
PROJECT LEADER
Associate Professor Robyn Alders AO
Faculty of Veterinary Science &
Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney
T +61 467 603 370
TANZANIAN COUNTRY COORDINATOR
Ms Wende Maulaga
Tanzania Veterinary Laboratory Agency
Temeke, Dar es Salaam
T +255 22 787 166 020
ZAMBIAN COUNTRY COORDINATOR
Dr Hilda Lumbwe
Department of Veterinary Services
Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock
T +260 966 760 065
NEWSLETTER COORDINATOR
Dr Julia de Bruyn
Project research assistant & PhD student
University of Sydney
T +61 467 398 396
Alders, R. et al. 2017. One Health, Veterinarians and the nexus between disease and
food security. Aust Vet J 95(12):451–453. doi:10.1111/avj.12645
Alders, R. & Kock, R. 2017. What's food and nutrition security got to do with wildlife
conservation? Aust. Zool. doi:10.7882/AZ.2016.040
Alders, R. 2017. The contributions of animal-source food to sustainable, safe, ethical
and optimal human diets. TropAg Conference, Brisbane, 20-22 Nov 2017.
Barter, J. et al. 2018. Exploring the use of ground egg shell to improve dietary calcium
intake in rural sub-Saharan Africa. Dietitians’ Association of Australia 35th
National Conference, Sydney. 17-19 May 2018 (Poster presentation).
de Bruyn, J. 2017. Healthy chickens, healthy children? Exploring contributions of
village poultry-keeping to the diets and growth of young children in rural Tanzania.
PhD thesis. Faculty of Science, University of Sydney. [Submitted 1 Dec 2017]
de Bruyn, J. et al. 2017. Characterising infant and young child feeding practices and
the consumption of poultry products in rural Tanzania: A mixed methods
approach. Matern Child Nutr. 2017;e12550. [Advance online publication]
doi:10.1111/mcn.12550
de Bruyn, J. et al. The chicken or the egg? Exploring bi-directional associations
between Newcastle disease vaccination and village chicken flock size in rural
Tanzania. PLOS One 12(11): e0188230. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0188230
Grech, A. et al. 2018. Nutrition knowledge, attitudes and dietary intake of women of
reproductive age in Bundabunda Ward, Zambia. Dietitians’ Association of Australia
35th National Conference, Sydney, 17-19 May 2018 (Oral presentation).
Ibrahim, Z. 2017. Women’s spaces of empowerment: A case of chicken keeping, food
security and nutrition in Sanza Ward, Manyoni District, Tanzania. Master of Arts
(Sociology) Dissertation. University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Nov 2017.
Magoke, G. et al. 2017. Aflatoxin contamination of village grains in central Tanzania:
Food and agricultural practices in relation to contamination and exposure risk.
3rd International Conference on Global Food Security, Cape Town, 3-6 Dec 2017.
Mng’ong’o, D.O. 2017. Effect of complementary foods on the growth patterns of
children under the age of five years in Majiri Ward, Manyoni District. Master of
Science (Human Nutrition), Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania.
Rukambile, E.. et al. 2017. A mixed methods approach to studying the public health
risks associated with extended human-chicken interaction in rural Tanzania.
3rd International Conference on Global Food Security, Cape Town, 3-6 Dec 2017.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS Journal articles, conference abstracts and theses
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