GHF Project Proposal Summary – Save the Children

Project Name: Documenting Evidence-Based Nutrition Strategies

Project Start Date: September 16 week

Project End Date: December 20

Time Required: 14 weeks

Project Type (Hybrid, In Person, Virtual):  Virtual

Project Location: Washington DC

Partner Name: Save the Children US

Partner Website: Save the Children

Project Background

Save the Children (SC) has over 25 years of global experience in designing and implementing large-scale nutrition programs in both development and emergency contexts. Since 2015, their programs have reached over 15 million children, adolescents, and pregnant women with nutrition services across Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Malawi, Laos, and Cambodia. SC has also trained 162,500 health providers and community workers on nutrition-related topics. Their integrated, community-based approach addresses the interrelated and multi-sectoral causes of malnutrition. This holistic approach has positioned SC as a global leader in maternal, infant, and young child, and adolescent nutrition, leveraging a continuum of care that spans from household to institutional levels.

Despite their experience and recognition as a leader in developing and implementing effective maternal and child nutrition strategies, including social and behavioral change initiatives, SC has limited resources to document their evidence-based technical approaches.  SC seeks support on a thorough document review process, including examining past project documentation, conducting interviews with team members who have in-depth knowledge and experience, and offering recommendations around the structure of comprehensive briefs.  The goal is to create comprehensive white papers or briefs that highlight successful past programs, identify effective approaches, and outline SC’s approaches and strategies to address complex challenges. Three specific areas have been identified for this documentation process and work on the briefs has already begun:

Governance: Understanding how to strengthen effective governance to enhance nutrition programs and outcomes. Social Behavior Change: Strategies to encourage large populations to adopt optimal behaviors that improve nutritional outcomes. Food Systems Strengthening: Integrating nutrition into food systems to ensure that nutritious diets are accessible and available to communities, moving beyond a focus solely on health services and household practices.

This documentation will serve to promote Save the Children's work to external stakeholders, inform internal teams, and build a community around these issues, ensuring sustainable change and preparing for future funding opportunities and partnerships.

Project Objectives and Target Deliverables*

Through collaboration with Pfizer Global Health Fellows, SC seeks to promote its impactful work through the creation of three external-facing briefs. Key objectives include:

Research & Document Review: Review existing documentation of Save the Children's nutrition programs. Analyze project reports, case studies, and program evaluations from the regions and contexts where SC has operated. Conduct interviews with key team members who have extensive knowledge and experience in nutrition programs. Synthesize & Advise: Provide recommendations on how to synthesize findings and advise on which key elements should be in focus. Offer recommendations for effectively structuring a white paper document, focusing on assisting SC in developing a robust framework for documentation and dissemination of its successful approaches. 

 *Note:  The exact detailed deliverables may be refined once the fellows are selected and the project begins, but will remain focused on the core project objectives

Project Structure

14-week virtual project leveraging the skills and expertise of three Pfizer fellows dedicating approximately 4 hours per week virtually