RAIN Plus - Baseline Report

To address stunting and other forms of malnutrition in Zambia, Concern Worldwide implemented the Realigning Agriculture to Improve Nutrition (RAIN) project from 2012-2015, which focuses on integrating agricultural, nutrition and health interventions at the district and community level.

The RAIN+ project, which began in April 2015, aims to improve maternal, infant and young child feeding (MIYCF) practices using a similar model to the RAIN project, but with a strengthened women’s empowerment component. It also attempts to increase farmers’ access to markets.

The RAIN+ project focuses on; homestead gardening and smallscale animal husbandry, behaviour change communication (BCC) to MIYCF practices and use of the health system and gender equality and women’s empowerment activities.

Over a 3-year period, the RAIN+ project aims to cover nearly all of the approximately 6,000 pregnant women and mothers/care givers of children <18 months old in each of the four project wards of Mumbwa District (Chisalu, Nakasaka, Nangoma, Shimbihzi).

The RAIN+ project consists of five main components:

1. homestead food production and market linkages
2. promotion of optimal MIYCF practices
3. improvements in WASH infrastructure and practices
4. women’s empowerment
5. an element of social accountability.

These approaches will be undertaken via the provision of training and agricultural inputs (e.g. seeds and tools), behaviour change communication via women’s groups, community-level media campaign, and rehabilitation of boreholes. While the RAIN+ project is coordinated by Concern Worldwide-Zambia, it will be implemented in cooperation with multiple agencies, including the Mumbwa Child Development Agency (MCDA), Women for Change (WfC), and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAL) and the Ministry of Community Development Mother and Child Health (MCDMCH).

The objective of the baseline survey was to collect information on priority outcome and output indicators of the RAIN+ project related to agriculture; MIYCF; gender equality; and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH).

This document covers humanitarian aid activities implemented with the financial assistance of the UK Aid. The views expressed herein should not be taken, in any way, to reflect the official opinion of UK Aid, and the UK Aid is responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.