Guided by a refreshed strategy and prioritized pipeline of studies, the unit positions the organization as a global leader in nutrition research, maximizes program impact, and supports high-quality research and evaluation with partners.
As chair of the Anaemia Action Alliance’s Programmatic Implementation Working Group, hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, we have supported countries in developing national anaemia reduction plans aligned with WHO’s Comprehensive Framework for Action on Anaemia. We contributed to drafting the Alliance’s operational guide and monitoring framework, which was designed to help policy makers and program managers implement actions across all five framework areas. The unit also led a comprehensive continental landscape analysis of anaemia prevalence and its determinants across all African Union (AU) member states and, in collaboration with WHO, coordinated the development of the AU Strategic Framework for Prevention and Management of Anaemia. This evidence-based framework, endorsed by the African Union Commission, was launched in February 2025.
To expand access to essential child survival services, we initiated a proof-of-concept study on the Fully Protected Child in Kenya and Senegal. Leveraging our technical assistance to strengthen the delivery of vitamin A supplementation (VAS) in routine systems, the study will assess whether an optimization model that increases timely contact with every eligible child under five can simultaneously boost VAS coverage, immunization and other services, while also examining feasibility for health workers and factors influencing uptake.
In Ethiopia, in collaboration with the Ethiopian Public Health Institute, University of California, Davis and the University of Toronto, Nutrition International contributed to developing and assessing double-fortified salt with iodine and folic acid (DFS-IoFA) to improve folate status and reduce neural tube defects. The project demonstrated that DFS-IoFA can be produced industrially in Ethiopia and is accepted by the population. A double-blind randomized control trial testing its biological efficacy has recently been completed, with results to be shared with the government in coming months.
Separately, we contributed to a theory-informed evaluation of Kenya’s domestic resource mobilization program, in partnership with the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie). The evaluation found a 50% increase in total nutrition funding in participating countries, with success linked to political support and strong human resources. Lessons from this study will guide future programming and nutrition financing technical assistance.
In collaboration with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, we quantified the intergenerational impact of maternal and child nutrition interventions on non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Findings show that high coverage of multiple micronutrient supplementation could prevent over 51,000 NCD deaths, six million hypertension cases and three million diabetes cases per birth cohort, with iron and folic acid estimated to achieve roughly half that impact.
To strengthen integrated delivery of nutrition services, we developed and validated a systems integration tool to identify where combined interventions can best meet needs, optimize scale and reduce costs. Validation studies in two Kenyan counties assessed priority adolescent nutrition challenges and integration opportunities, and the tool will join Nutrition International’s open access inventory for countries and partners.
Together with Atlas AI, we developed an artificial intelligence (AI)-based geospatial platform to map nutrition vulnerability with greater precision and lower cost, targeting children at risk of missing vaccines and VAS. Test-piloted in Kenya, the platform is planned for expansion to 11 countries, alongside a climate and nutrition joint vulnerability mapping tool ready for field testing next year. Publications and dissemination efforts are underway to promote these innovations and encourage investment in AI for public health programs in low- and middle-income countries.
