Emergency preparedness and response for nutrition

2nd June 2015

UNICEF’s CCCs

1: Effective leadership

2: Nutritional assessment and surveillance

3: Infant and young child feeding (IYCF)

4: Addressing acute malnutrition.

5: Micronutrients

6: Information

Preparedness Actions: CCCs

• Clarify the responsibilities of UNICEF and its partners regarding nutrition in humanitarian situations; strengthen existing coordination mechanisms or, if unavailable, create them in collaboration with national authorities to ensure that the humanitarian response is timely and coordinated, and that it conforms to humanitarian principles and agreed-upon standards and benchmarks.

Commitment 1: Effective Leadership

Leadership - Issues

• HQ– HR capacity, Strategic focus, Partnership, Technical

capacity, representation on cluster issue by senior management

• RO– Support for cluster, roles and responsibility, capacity,

representation of cluster issues

• COs– Cluster activation decision –Analysis and decision

making and coordination architecture, representation and country levels

Accountability -Issues

• CO– Resource mobilization/allocation for

cluster functions– HR for cluster coordination (dedicated vs

double hatting)– Cluster management structure – line

management, status, contracts– Minimum commitments from cluster

partners – who ensures this happens– Monitoring of cluster performance

Transition/deactivations

When to transition/deactivate?– Humanitarian situation has improved– Sector coordination platform can accommodate the

coordination of the residual humanitarian actions

How to lead transition/deactivation?– Structure and the capacity requirements– Transition plans and clear benchmark for

transition/deactivation (PD/GNC Collaboration)– Advocacy and support to government on the

establishment of sector working group– Clarify accountability arrangements if a merger of the

nutrition cluster coordination is proposed

Commitment 1: Effective Leadership

Training Material: http://nutritioncluster.net/training-topics/cluster-approach-awareness-trainings

Guidance Document

Clarifying CLA accountabilities

Guidance document shared with COs

Part 1: the cluster approach- how it works and UNICEF Rep responsibilities

Part Two: The cluster approach – UNICEF countryoffice responsibilities

Preparedness Actions: CCCs

• Support a multi-sectoral rapid assessment mechanism and format that includes priority nutrition information.

• Ensure the availability of guidelines and capacity for conducting and reporting on rapid nutrition surveys and assessments; advocate for the inclusion of nutritional assessment and programme monitoring data in national early warning systems;

Commitment 2: Timely Nutritional Assessment

Response- assessment

• How well are we doing in this role?– Guidance, – Capacity building, – Support for surveys, Data management – Advocacy around nutrition situation based

on evidence– Strategic partnership at HQ, Regional and

country level– Role in Post Disaster Needs Assessment

(PDNA)

Preparedness Actions: CCCs

• Advocate for and provide guidance on appropriate quantities of quality complementary foods to add to the food basket; define essential infant and young child feeding (IYCF) interventions in emergency scenarios; develop, translate and pre-position appropriate materials for IYCF; and include emergency IYCF in ongoing training of health workers and lay counsellors.

Commitment 3: Support IYCF

Response- IFE issues

• Life saving nature not recognized• Donors do not see “hard” results• More than messaging• Beneficiary preferences for material inputs

(BMS, especially in middle income countries)

• Need to engage across sectors- health for BF, food security for CF – good country explains??

• Role of cash and vouchers for complementary feeding?

Care of the non breastfed infant

• Experience with RUIF in Ebola and Haiti 2010– Caseload estimates- difficulty in identifying

needs– Procurement – difficulty identifying supplier,

internal systems not streamlined between PD and SD

– Programme planning and training needed for use of RUIF

– Mitigating risk- WASH, cup feeding/kit??– Hesitation to engage in replacement feeding– Clear external communication

New IYCF E tools

Save the children IYCF E toolkit 2• Components:

1) Core Toolkit - Essential Documents for an IYCF-E Response (in Arabic)

•2) Key Implementation Resources - Useful Documents for Initiating an IYCF-E Response

•3) References - Key Guidelines, guidance Notes and Examples Related to IYCF-E

• https://sites.google.com/site/stcehn/documents/iycf-e-toolkit

Preparedness Actions: CCCs

• Establish integrated guidelines for management of acute malnutrition; assess coverage of existing services for management of severe acute malnutrition (SAM) and establish a contingency supply and distribution plan.

• Getting out of the “GAM ghetto” in triggering action

• MOU with WFP/UNHCR

Commitment 4: Management of Acute Malnutrition

Preparedness Actions: CCCs

• Establish guidance on micronutrient supplementation and set up partnerships to implement emergency micronutrient activities. Establish a contingency plan and mechanism for procurement and distribution of all necessary supplies for emergency micronutrient interventions (vitamin A, iodized salt, multiple micronutrient supplements), including stockpiles or standby arrangements with providers of micronutrient supplements.

Commitment 5: Access to Micronutrients

Preparedness Actions: CCCs

• Map community capacities and existing communication channels to identify the most effective ones for nutrition information, and draft appropriate nutrition messages to be incorporated into multi-sectoral communication initiatives.

Commitment 6: Communication

Key Preparedness actions

– Investment in HR capacity at all levels – Nutrition Sector coordination, TORs, TWGs,

strategic planning, contact list of nutrition sector partners

– Familiarity with humanitarian principles and basic understanding of the transformative agenda, the cluster approach and accountability to affected populations.

– Information Management, Assessments (guidelines systems and capacity strengthening)

– Capacity mapping including programme coverage, capacity development

– Policies and guideline (CMAM, IYCF-E, MN etc)– EP/R plan, Contingency planning, EWEA

Discussion

What additional leadership and coordination issues would like to add?

What additional preparedness and response issues would you like to add (assessment, IYCF-E, CMAM, MN, Communication, supplies and HR)

Each table should list three priority preparedness and response issue (coordination and programme) for which RO and HQ support is needed?