Action Against Hunger today announced the publication of a case study entitled, Nutrition Surveillance in Emergency Contexts: South Sudan Case Study, in Field Exchange, a publication focused on nutrition and food security in emergencies.

The study outlines a new way to gather crucial nutrition data during emergencies which was piloted over the past year in South Sudan with funding from UNICEF and technical support from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Lead author of the study, Cécile Basquin, who is Nutrition and Health Advisor at Action Against Hunger – USA stated, “Our surveillance emergency team traveled to some of the most remote areas of South Sudan to collect nutrition data using an adapted method of SMART, called Rapid SMART, to provide actionable information in a timely manner.” She continued, “This field experience is a good example of how much can be achieved when various areas of expertise cooperate. With UNICEF's trust and financial support, the technical expertise of our colleagues from the CDC in Atlanta, and collaboration between technical, human resources, and logistics teams in the Action Against Hunger network, we had all the needed ingredients for a successful partnership.”

Alina Michalska, an author of the study and the SMART Program Manager at Action Against Hunger -Canada said, “High quality nutrition data and nutrition surveillance are paramount for effective decision making and resource allocation. The data collected through these surveys helped determine where children had the highest rates of malnutrition and informed the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis in South Sudan. This allowed the humanitarian community to provide and evaluate the effectiveness of life-saving interventions.”

Kennedy Musumba, SMART Capacity Building Coordinator explains, “Action Against Hunger has continuously played a key role in provision of technical support and capacity building of partners to ensure timely dissemination of high quality nutrition surveys.” The strengthening of the Nutrition Information Working Group’s technical capacity has helped in expediting the process of validating nutrition surveys, thus ensuring availability of sufficient information for decision making. It provided an opportunity to determine country specific nutrition information needs as well as capacity gaps within agencies,” he added.

To read the study (p.73), please visit http://files.ennonline.net/attachments/2389/FEX-50-Web-online.pdf

ABOUT ACTION AGAINST HUNGER

Action Against Hunger saves the lives of severely malnourished children while helping communities become self-sufficient. Recognized as a world leader in the fight against malnutrition, Action Against Hunger has pursued its vision of a world without hunger for over three decades, combating hunger in emergency situations of conflict, natural disaster, and chronic food insecurity. With more than 6,500 staff in over 45 countries, our innovative programs in nutrition, food security and livelihoods, and water, sanitation, and hygiene reach more than thirteen million people each year, restoring self-sufficiency to vulnerable populations throughout the world.