study
Zimbabwe
Matabeleland North Province
2022
© Marion Legrand, Action Against Hunger
Information brief NCA Matabeleland North
Analystes
Lenka Blanárová
Fine Mazambara
Managing organization
International Medical Corps
International Medical Corps
funder
USAID
USAID
The Amalima Loko program is a five-year USAID funded Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) program designed to improve food and nutrition security in Zimbabwe through increased food access and sustainable watershed management. The program is being implemented in Matabeleland North by a consortium led by Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA) and comprised of the Organisation of Rural Associations for Progress, Dabane Water Workshops, The Manoff Group, International Medical Corps, and Mercy Corps.
The modified Nutrition Causal Analysis (NCA) was conducted from June 2021 to September 2022 in Binga, Hwange, Lupane and Nkayi districts, which constitute the Amalima Loko intervention zone in Matabeleland North Province.
The analyses undertaken as part of this NCA study categorised 20 risk factors, believed to have an impact on the prevalence of undernutrition in the Amalima Loko intervention zone. Following a triangulation of data from diverse sources, 4 risk factors were identified as having a major impact, 12 risk factors were classified as having an important impact and 4 risk factors were judged to have a minor impact on the prevalence of undernutrition in the zone of study. Among the major risk factors, two were identified in the sector of health, namely low birth weight and non-optimal nutritional status of women, one risk factor, i.e. low access to income sources, was identified in the sector of food security and livelihoods, while one risk factor, i.e. low social support for women, was identified in the sector of gender.
Based on available quantitative data (DHS 2015 and MICS 2019), the calculation of statistical associations between individual risk factors and nutritional status of children allowed for the differentiation of risk factors associated with wasting, stunting, underweight and anaemia. No risk factors were applicable for all conditions.
Common protective factors for wasting on the basis of weight for height z-score, stunting on the basis of height for age z-score and underweight on the basis of weight for age z-score (WAZ) include mother’s height, mother’s Body Mass Index (BMI), child’s weight at birth, and mother’s level of education. Mother’s haemoglobin level came out as a protective factor against stunting, underweight and anaemia.
The final report of this study has not yet been cleared for publication.
The modified Nutrition Causal Analysis (NCA) was conducted from June 2021 to September 2022 in Binga, Hwange, Lupane and Nkayi districts, which constitute the Amalima Loko intervention zone in Matabeleland North Province.
The analyses undertaken as part of this NCA study categorised 20 risk factors, believed to have an impact on the prevalence of undernutrition in the Amalima Loko intervention zone. Following a triangulation of data from diverse sources, 4 risk factors were identified as having a major impact, 12 risk factors were classified as having an important impact and 4 risk factors were judged to have a minor impact on the prevalence of undernutrition in the zone of study. Among the major risk factors, two were identified in the sector of health, namely low birth weight and non-optimal nutritional status of women, one risk factor, i.e. low access to income sources, was identified in the sector of food security and livelihoods, while one risk factor, i.e. low social support for women, was identified in the sector of gender.
Based on available quantitative data (DHS 2015 and MICS 2019), the calculation of statistical associations between individual risk factors and nutritional status of children allowed for the differentiation of risk factors associated with wasting, stunting, underweight and anaemia. No risk factors were applicable for all conditions.
Common protective factors for wasting on the basis of weight for height z-score, stunting on the basis of height for age z-score and underweight on the basis of weight for age z-score (WAZ) include mother’s height, mother’s Body Mass Index (BMI), child’s weight at birth, and mother’s level of education. Mother’s haemoglobin level came out as a protective factor against stunting, underweight and anaemia.
The final report of this study has not yet been cleared for publication.
