The burdens of participation: A mixed-methods study of the effects of a nutrition-sensitive agriculture program on women’s time use in Malawi

Margolies, Amy; Colantuoni, Elizabeth; Morgan, Rosemary; Gelli, Aulo; Caulfield, Laura E.

doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2022.106122

Cited by 7 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…In addition to other barriers related to poor network connectivity and digital literacy, the evaluation found that scheduling the counselling services was challenging for some women due to their competing time demands, and family members were hard to engage due to working outside of the home [ 28 ]. Whether women are able to participate in NSA programmes and thus benefit from them may be influenced by time trade-offs [ 29 ], and the time to participate in programmes is not equally available to all women [ 30 ]. As such, the time poverty of women must not be overlooked when designing interventions for marginalised communities, especially as poorer women tend to be more affected [ 31 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feasibility, acceptability and equity of a mobile intervention for Upscaling Participatory Action and Videos for Agriculture and Nutrition (m-UPAVAN) in rural Odisha, India

Fivian,

Parida,

Harris-Fry

et al. 2024

PLOS Glob Public Health

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Addressing undernutrition requires strategies that remove barriers to health for all. We adapted an intervention from the ‘UPAVAN’ trial to a mobile intervention (m-UPAVAN) during the COVID-19 pandemic in rural Odisha, India. In UPAVAN, women’s groups viewed and discussed participatory videos on nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive agricultural (NSA) topics. In m-UPAVAN, weekly videos and audios on the same topics were disseminated via WhatsApp and an interactive voice response system. We assessed feasibility, acceptability, and equity of m-UPAVAN using a convergent parallel mixed-methods design. m-UPAVAN ran from Mar-Sept 2021 in 133 UPAVAN villages. In Feb-Mar 2021, we invited 1000 mothers of children aged 0–23 months to participate in a sociodemographic phone survey. Of those, we randomly sampled 200 mothers each month for five months for phone surveys to monitor progress against targets. Feasibility targets were met if >70% received videos/audios and >50% watched/listened at least once. Acceptability targets were met if >75% of those watching/listening liked the videos/audios and <20% opted out of the intervention. We investigated mothers’ experiences of the intervention, including preferences for m-UPAVAN versus UPAVAN, using in-person, semi-structured interviews (n = 38). Of the 810 mothers we reached, 666 provided monitoring data at least once. Among these mothers, feasibility and acceptability targets were achieved. m-UPAVAN engaged whole families, which facilitated family-level discussions around promoted practices. Women valued the ability to access m-UPAVAN content on demand. This advantage did not apply to many mothers with limited phone access. Mothers highlighted that the UPAVAN interventions’ in-person participatory approaches and longer videos were more conducive to learning and inclusive, and that mobile approaches provide important complementarity. We conclude that mobile NSA interventions are feasible and acceptable, can engage families, and reinforce learning. However, in-person participatory approaches remain essential for improving equity of NSA interventions. Investments are needed in developing and testing hybrid NSA interventions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feasibility, acceptability and equity of a mobile intervention for Upscaling Participatory Action and Videos for Agriculture and Nutrition (m-UPAVAN) in rural Odisha, India

Fivian,

Parida,

Harris-Fry

et al. 2024

PLOS Glob Public Health

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“…This raises the concern of the time burden of programmes targeted at women. Recent evidence shows that nutrition‐sensitive programmes may impact women's time use (Margolies, 2019); but do not necessarily negatively impact nutrition (van den Bold et al, 2021). The impact evaluation will measure the effects on women's empowerment with the project‐level Women's Empowerment in Agriculture Index (pro‐WEAI) and on men's nutrition knowledge.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The economic costs of a multisectoral nutrition programme implemented through a credit platform in Bangladesh

Thai

Margolies

Gelli

et al. 2022

Maternal & Child Nutrition

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Bangladesh struggles with undernutrition in women and young children. Nutritionsensitive agriculture programmes can help address rural undernutrition. However, questions remain on the costs of multisectoral programmes. This study estimates the economic costs of the Targeting and Re-aligning Agriculture to Improve Nutrition (TRAIN) programme, which integrated nutrition behaviour change and agricultural extension with a credit platform to support women's income generation. We used the Strengthening Economic Evaluation for Multisectoral Strategies for Nutrition (SEEMS-Nutrition) approach. The approach aligns costs with a multisectoral nutrition typology, identifying inputs and costs along programme impact pathways. We measure and allocate costs for activities and inputs, combining expenditures and micro-costing. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected retrospectively from implementers and beneficiaries. Expenditure data and economic costs were combined to calculate incremental economic costs. The intervention was designed around a randomised control trial. Incremental costs are presented by treatment arm. The total incremental cost was $795,040.34 for a 3.5-year period. The annual incremental costs per household were US$65.37 (Arm 2), USD$114.15 (Arm 3) and $157.11 (Arm 4). Total costs were led by nutrition counselling (37%), agriculture extension (12%), supervision (12%), training (12%), monitoring and evaluation (9%) and community events (5%). Total input costs were led by personnel (68%), travel (12%) and supplies (7%). This study presents the total incremental costs of an agriculture-nutrition intervention implemented through a microcredit platform.Costs per household compare favourably with similar interventions. Our results illustrate the value of a standardised costing approach for comparison with other multisectoral nutrition interventions.

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“…Malawi is renowned for its diverse fruit crops, including bananas, citrus species, coffee, macadamia nuts, and tea. Bananas and citrus are particularly important, constituting a staple part of the diet in rural and urban areas, with approximately 95% of their production consumed domestically [4,5]. Additionally, coffee and tea are major products consumed locally and exported [6,7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Farmer preference for macadamia varieties and constraints to production in Malawi

Zuza,

Araya,

Maseyk

et al. 2024

PLoS ONE

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Macadamia nuts constitute a vital component of both nutrition and livelihoods for smallholder producers in Malawi. We conducted a comprehensive mixed-methods study, combining qualitative and quantitative analyses, to explore varietal preferences and production challenges among these farmers. Leveraging cross-sectional data from 144 members of the Highlands Macadamia Cooperative Union Limited, our study underscores several significant findings. Our findings reveal that the majority of smallholder macadamia farmers (62%) are aged over 50, with farming as their primary occupation. Varied preferences are driven by yield-related traits, including high yield potential (38%), nut quality (29%), and extended flowering patterns (15%). Among the macadamia varieties, the top five choices, grown by over half of the farmers, include HAES 660 (18%), 800 (10%), 791 (9%), 816 (8%), and 246 (7%). Additionally, our study identifies five primary constraints faced by smallholder macadamia farmers: insect pests (81%), diseases (34%), limited market access (33%), wind damage (25%), and inadequate agricultural advisory services (17%). Based on these findings, we propose two policy recommendations to enhance smallholder macadamia production and productivity in Malawi and other regions. Specifically, we advocate for informed breeding programs that align with farmer preferences to promote greater adoption of macadamia varieties. Additionally, we emphasize the crucial role of the Malawian government in the macadamia value chain, suggesting active participation in providing extension services and marketing support, akin to its support for other cash crops.

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The burdens of participation: A mixed-methods study of the effects of a nutrition-sensitive agriculture program on women’s time use in Malawi

Cited by 7 publications

References 53 publications

Feasibility, acceptability and equity of a mobile intervention for Upscaling Participatory Action and Videos for Agriculture and Nutrition (m-UPAVAN) in rural Odisha, India

Feasibility, acceptability and equity of a mobile intervention for Upscaling Participatory Action and Videos for Agriculture and Nutrition (m-UPAVAN) in rural Odisha, India

The economic costs of a multisectoral nutrition programme implemented through a credit platform in Bangladesh

Farmer preference for macadamia varieties and constraints to production in Malawi

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