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Civil Society Efforts April 2016

Photo: Mark Kaye/Save the Children

SUN Civil Society Efforts | April 2016 2

Contents

• The SUN Civil Society Alliance story– Overview of SUN Civil Society Network and CSAs

• The Value We Bring

1. Speaking with one voice2. Raising nutrition’s profile3. Enriching nutrition policy4. Highlighting gender needs5. Promoting accountability6. Building local capacity7. The long view8. Value for money

The SUN Civil Society Alliance story

© National Nutrition Council, Madagascar


SUN Civil Society Network

• An enabling network for civil society within the Scaling Up Nutrition movement

• More than 2,500 local, national and international members

• Supports Civil Society Alliances (CSAs) in 39 countries

• Supports access to funding, shares learning, builds capacity

• Accelerates CSA establishment, strong governance structures, effective advocacy approaches and high quality action through cross-learning

• Potential to reach and improve nutrition of 85 million stunted children under 5 across the 56 SUN countries with continued investment

SUN Civil Society Alliances


Photo: Jodi Bieber/Save the Children

• Unite community groups, national CSOs and international civil society organisations

• Coordinate civil society advocacy and action on nutrition atnational, sub-national levels

• Channel expertise, evidence, reality of thosesuffering from malnutrition into governmentpolicies, plans

• Hold governments to accountfor nutrition commitments


SUN countries with established Civil Society Alliances (CSAs)

Our unique contribution

• Civil society essential for sustainable nutrition efforts

• ‘Eyes and ears’ embedded in communities, implementing programmes

• Sharing on-the-ground expertise, community knowledge of what works

• Working with decentralised structures and local champions to ensure nutrition efforts reach most vulnerable


Photo: Jonathan Hyams/Save the Children

Impact: Peru

In Peru, chronic infant malnutrition has been halved in less than a decade

Civil society advocacy a key driver of progress

Coalition focused political attentionon first 1,000 days, securedcommitments with the 5 x 5 x 5 campaign

Helped to sustain impact acrosschanges in government


Photo: Mariluz Aparicio Vásquez / Save the Children

But funding in jeopardy

• Over half of CSAs have had funding from the SUN Multi-Partner Trust Fund but this is coming to an end

• 26 CSAs need funding (11 partial, 15 full) for 2016

• CSAs are seeking in-country supportwhere possible

• Loss of funding = loss of investments,momentum, impact built overfive years of SUN efforts


The value we bring

Photo: Mark Kaye/Save the Children


Overview

“Civil society has an absolutely pivotal role to play in the next phase of SUN – and in ending stunting and malnutrition. Their coordinated advocacy is helping to shape governments’ policies, programmes and plans.

“In order to build on investments to date and sustain its work, civil society needs funding to ensure that joint efforts are long-lasting and to ensure progress is accelerated, leaving no one behind as a Movement and scaling up nutrition efforts across SUN countries and beyond.”

Tom Arnold, SUN Movement Coordinator

1. Speaking with one voice

• CSAs coordinate civil society groups across all sectors with a stake in nutrition

• Present a unified voice, interact with governments as one body with aligned goals

• Channel views of grass roots communities affected by malnutrition directly to policy-makers


Impact: Laos

Civil society not well coordinated before Laos CSA began work in 2014

Now has strong, credible partnership with Government, local civil society have platform for participation

CSA helped run first ever National Nutrition Forum for all sectors, all levels of government, civil society


Photo: Save the Children


‘They see the value’

“The Government now sees that civil society has a major role to play in tackling nutrition and they see the value in having a coordinated body.

“We’re trying to get local groups ‘into the light’, opening up space for their voices as the ones who are working in the villages with the people affected by malnutrition.”

Banthida Komphasouk, SUN CSA Coordinator, Laos

2. Raising nutrition’s profile

• Energise national conversations via the media and nutrition champions including MPs, faith leaders, celebrities

• CSAs push nutrition up political agendas as a non-partisan national priority - keep it there beyond political cycles

• Advocate for more resources for nutrition


Impact: Zambia

Used public awareness, media campaigns to ignite national debate on nutrition, increase demand

Convinced MPs to form All Party Parliamentary Caucus on food and nutrition

Ran ‘Vote Nutrition’ campaign for 2015 elections involving top musicians

Nutrition included in manifestos, political commitments


Photo credit: Mark52 / Shutterstock.com


‘Nutrition is a buzzword’

“Before, people didn’t talk about nutrition in the media; now it is covered in the papers almost every day.

“Nutrition has become a buzzword – even politicians have realised it’s an important thing to include.”

William Chilufya, Coordinator, SUN Civil Society Alliance, Zambia

3. Enriching nutrition policy

• Channel civil society expertise, evidence into better nutrition policy-making across all affected sectors

• Help to shape National Nutrition Strategies, National Development Plans, other sectorial policies

• Feed technical input into planning, implementation of policies on the ground



Impact

Kenya successfully advocated with Ministry of Health for revision of National Health Policy to include stronger nutrition component

Peru persuaded Government to work with mothers to take children for medical checks as part of cash transfer programs for the poorest. Led to 40% drop in child malnutrition in targeted areas.

Zambia secured change in national maize policy to promote diversification away from maize monoculture via Government e-vouchers

Nepal helped secure a directive that local level governments must include a nutrition program in their work plans


Impact: Uganda

Uganda Civil society alliance (UCCO-SUN) now directly consulted and involved in nutrition policy formulation and planning

UCCO-SUN consulted for input in drafting the East African Food and Nutrition Policy

UCCO-SUN contributed to development and role out of the Uganda Nutrition Action Plan 2011-2016

UCCO-SUN consulted on developing a new draft national nutrition policy 2015-2020

UCCO-SUN considered key player in rolling out the national advocacy and communication strategy adopted in 2015


Multi-sectoral approach

NUTRITIONSENSITIVE ACTIVITIES

Number of CSAswith a focus on

NUTRITIONSPECIFIC ACTIVITIES

Treatment of acute malnutrition

Micronutrient supplementation

Water and Sanitation

Agriculture

Access to healthcare Women’s empowerment

Disaster resilience

Education and employment

Exclusive breastfeedingup to 6 months of age

Food fortification

4. Highlighting gender needs

• CSAs empower women as critical drivers of improved household nutrition

• Promote optimal breast feeding and nutrition in the first 1,000 days

• Ensure women’s needs included in nutrition policies

• Support women to becomeincome earners, decision makers,agents of change


Photo: Stuart Sia/Save the Children

Impact: Zimbabwe

Increased number of women breast feeding to 6 months

Formed pregnant women and lactating mothers’ support groups

Helped women take leadership roles in community forums providing training in nutritionsensitive agriculture

Promoted vegetable cultivation, animal husbandry, dam rehabilitation, improving women’s incomes and household nutrition


Photo: Sebastian Rich/Save the Children


5. Promoting accountability

• Hold governments, other stakeholders to account on nutrition commitments

• Track nutrition allocations and expenditure at national, sub-national levels

• Monitor implementation / impact at local level, providing constructive approach to addressing challenges, improving practice

• ‘Walk the talk’ and ensure civil society accountability to citizens

Impact: Peru

Submit annual balance report on Government actions on malnutrition, highlight successes, challenges

Participate in ‘consensus-based monitoring’ of Government programs at national, sub-national levels,

Bring valued evidence from local areas and investigate problems when a national ‘alert’ is issued, e.g. solved bottleneck in supply of micronutrients


Photo: Alejandro Kirchuk/Save the Children

6. Building local capacity

• CSAs promote knowledge sharing and learning among CSOs and INGOs

• Help members to be informed about and align to government policies

• Empower citizens to change their behaviour and realise their rights


Photo: Hedinn Halldorsson/Save the Children

Laos: ‘A chance to learn’

“We focus on the capacity building as that’s what our members really value. The CSA is the only platform for international and local organisations to come together and share what’s worked and what hasn’t. They’ve really valued the chance to learn from each other.

“Last year we held three workshops and a study tour for local organisations. We also invite the government to come and inform them about their plans so everyone is working to the same goals.”

Banthida Komphasouk, SUN CSA Coordinator, Laos



Uganda: ‘We have taken the initiative’

“Our coalition has taken the initiative to build the capacity of its member CSOs in nutrition advocacy. We have done this through three trainings for our members in nutrition advocacy and engagement of members in advocacy and communication related events.”

Peterson Kato Kikomeko, SUN CSA, Uganda



7. The long view

• Civil society is key to sustainable nutrition efforts

• CSAs embed nutrition in policy processes forthe long term, beyond political cycles

• Change behaviour at the household level,create demand for better nutrition,support communities to improve prospects

• Increase focus on young people asagents of change


Impact: Guatemala

Household level empowerment of excluded groups to realise rights to food and nutrition, education, health

22 youth groups conducted social auditing of 1,000 days strategy implementation

Targeted remote communities, some a 6-7 hour walk away, to survey mothers, pregnant women, health care professionals

Results analysed, ready to disseminate, share with new government, to complement existing social audits


Photo: Caroline Trutmann/Save the Children


8. Value for money

Civil Society Alliances and the CSN have achieved real impact in a short period for modest budgets

• Kenya’s CSA budget was US$278,628 for 2014/15

• With this funding, the CSA achieved:– Stronger nutrition component in national health policy– Clear budget lines for nutrition in four counties– National resources mobilised for county level nutrition– Cultivation of 3 high profile nutrition champions including First Lady– Nutrition training for more than 200 advocates, 31 journalists

• Donor investments = catalyst for more investments. INGOs invested over $1.9m between June 2013 - December 2015 in support of global network efforts against donor investments of $1m.

Thank you

Photo: Adam Hinton/Save the Children