Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Programme (NALEP) has also been introduced in Nairobi province (Z. Ishani
and D. Lamba, unpublished work, 2007).
F
OOD
S
ECURITY
Dietary diversity
Out of the 300 households that were in the baseline survey, 57 per cent were
in the medium group that had consumed 4-6 groups of different foods in the
past 24 hours (Table 1.1). Similarly, out of the 150 households in the
evaluation survey, 54.7 per cent were also in this medium group.
Among the 30 households in the intervention, 30 per cent had low dietary
diversity of 1-3 groups before intervention, but after intervention shifted to
the medium diversity of 4-6 food groups. Those 70 per cent with medium
diversity before intervention increased to 86.7 per cent after intervention. Also
post-intervention, 10 per cent of households moved from medium diversity to
high diversity where 7-9 groups were consumed. These results are associated
with increased crop and dietary diversity due to interventions. High levels of
dietary diversity ensure adequate intakes of essential nutrients such as
vitamins and minerals, as well as increased nutrient density (Hoddinott and
Yohannes, 2002).
Nutrient intakes by children <5 years
Improvements were noted in both caloric and protein intakes of the children
belonging to the two groups, as presented in Table 1.2. These improvements
could be associated with increased amounts of both food and income from the
sale of the surplus produce.
There was also improvement in both vitamin A and iron intakes, as seen
in Table 1.2. This was probably due to increased production and higher
consumption of fruits. Consumption of vegetables and livestock products
increases vitamin A and iron intakes. Research demonstrated that children in
Table 1.1 Dietary diversity based on RDA before and after intervention
Dietary
diversity
Baseline
Evaluation
300 assessed
30 vulnerable
150 evaluated
30 intervened
N %N %N %N %
1-3 low
4-6 medium
7-9 high
122
171
7
40.7
57.0
2.3
9
21
-
30.0
70.0
-
67
82
1
44.6
54.7
0.7
1
26
3
3.3
86.7
10.0
Total
300
100
30
100
150
100
30
100
