Water, Livestock, and Malnutrition: Findings from an Impact Assessment

Community Resilience to Acute Malnutrition

The Dar Sila region of eastern Chad experiences highly variable rainfall, seasonal food insecurity, and a high prevalence of acute malnutrition. In 2012, Concern Worldwide implemented a multisectoral program that aimed to prevent seasonal spikes in acute malnutrition in the region. The program, called Community Resilience to Acute Malnutrition (CRAM), focused on increasing access to clean water and primary healthcare, and improving hygiene practices and food security. Feinstein designed and conducted a clustered randomized control trial from 2012 to 2015 to assess the impact of the program and identify potential links to malnutrition.

The study found that CRAM had a significant impact. The multisectoral intervention reduced the prevalence of acute and chronic malnutrition among children in the intervention households compared to non-intervention households. The report also tries to unpack why CRAM is working and how it could potentially be improved. The data suggest that the positive impact of CRAM maybe due to access to clean water and better hygiene practices along the water chain (from point of use to transport and storage). Furthermore, a significant relationship between village cattle density and child nutritional status suggests that contamination from cattle feces along the water chain could be linked to a higher prevalence of acute malnutrition. However, villages with a history of pastoralism and hence livestock ownership have children with significantly better nutritional outcomes despite greater ownership of cattle. The qualitative data suggests that different types of livestock water management practices and seasonal migration of cattle in the former pastoralist households could be reducing contamination by cattle of the water source and along the water chain. The findings presented in the report have direct implications for future programming in Chad and wider learning around multisectoral nutrition approaches.

A briefing paper about the evaluation is available here.

This report is available in French here. La version en français est disponible ici.

ASSOCIATED PROJECT

SUBJECTS

PUBLICATION TYPE

LOCATION

RELATED PUBLICATIONS

Thumbnail image of report cover

This desk study explores how state-owned policies and programs in pastoral areas of the Sudano-Sahel and the Greater Horn of Africa meet pastoralists’ needs and priorities.

thumbnail image of report cover

This report outlines an anticipatory insurance product designed to support farmers in the drought-prone regions of Malawi and Zambia.

thumbnail image of report cover

This report presents the final findings from the USAID Nawiri longitudinal study, which investigated the drivers of the persistently high rates of acute malnutrition from September 2021 to September 2023.

thumbnail image of document cover

This learning brief examines the drivers of malnutrition in Isiolo and Marsabit Counties and their implications for policy and programs.

thumbnail image of document cover

The Guidelines for Participatory Water Management and Development in Karamoja, Uganda, were developed to improve the planning, development, and management of domestic and livestock water sources, using an easy-to-use 3-phase,…

Thumbnail image of publication cover

The time pressure involved in designing and implementing anticipatory action can discourage the localization of decision-making. Learn more from a cartoon-infused summary of insights.

Load more