Canada to support Action Against Hunger’s Systems Enhancement for Transformative Health (SETH) Project in Guatemala and Kenya
Thanks to Canada’s ongoing leadership in the area of maternal and child health, Action Against Hunger will ensure more Guatemalan and Kenyan children celebrate their fifth birthdays.
Through the Partnerships for Strengthening Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PSMNCH) commitments made by the Government of Canada in 2014, Action Against Hunger/ Action contre la Faim will directly contribute to the reduction of maternal and child mortality of more than 1,338,000 women, men, girls, and boys in both countries over the next four years.
The Systems Enhancement for Transformative Health project aims first to improve maternal, adolescent, and child nutrition through promotion of local feeding and care practices, nutritious foods, and supplements. Secondly, the project will strengthen the effectiveness of community referral systems, increase awareness of existing health services, and reinforce health systems in both countries. Action Against Hunger and our partners will simultaneously address wider nutrition security issues related to access to food and income.
This project will focus on achieving the following results:
- Improved delivery and utilization of essential health and nutrition services;
- Improved maternal, adolescent, child and infant nutrition; and
- Improved management and dissemination of nutritional health information systems to inform local, national and global decision-making.
Action Against Hunger works in collaboration with a range of partners in Guatemala and Kenya, including but not limited to the Guatemalan Ministry of Health, the Guatemalan Ministry of Agriculture, the Kenyan Ministry of Health, Doctors of the World, and Helen Keller International. Action Against Hunger has longstanding experience in both countries, with a strong commitment from, and partnership with, those communities in which we work as well as organizations and governments that we collaborate with.
In both Guatemala and Kenya, promising strides have been made in governance, which provide Action Against Hunger and partners with unique opportunities to influence health care policy and investment in Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH). Action Against Hunger purposely aligned these two seemingly unconnected countries for this project as a way to draw learning from the distinct contexts in each country and foster a global exchange.
“Action Against Hunger would like to recognize and extend our appreciation to the Government of Canada for its generous investment towards Maternal, Newborn and Child Health,” said Danny Glenwright, Executive Director of Action Against Hunger Canada. “Through addressing health and undernutrition we will not only save and improve lives but we will contribute to building strong and resilient individuals, families, communities, and populations. We are pleased to be part of Canada’s efforts and we look forward, together with our partners, to making great strides towards improved maternal and child health for those most in need.”
About Action Against Hunger
Action Against Hunger is a globally recognized international humanitarian organization with a presence in more than 47 countries. Action Against Hunger staff provide emergency relief and focus on saving the lives of severely malnourished children, while also tackling the underlying causes of hunger and working with local systems to transform short-term interventions into sustainable, long-term solutions. Recognized as a world leader in the fight against malnutrition, Action Against Hunger has pursued its vision of a world without hunger for more than three decades, combating hunger in emergency situations of conflict, natural disaster, and chronic food insecurity. With more than 7,000 staff across the globe, our innovative programs in nutrition, food security and livelihoods, and water, sanitation, and hygiene, reach more than 14.9 million people each year, restoring self-sufficiency to vulnerable populations throughout the world.
For more information please contact, please contact Katie Corker at kcorker@actionagainsthunger.ca or by phone at 416-644-1016 x 211.