Weekly iron and folic acid supplementation and nutrition education for adolescent girls in Africa and Asia

ABSTRACT

ASIA & AFRICA. What this article is about This article outlines the activities carried out by Nutrition International since 2015, providing weekly iron and folic acid (IFA) supplementation to adolescents residing in six separate high-risk countries. Key messages * Despite regional supply chain challenges and the complications due to the COVID-19 pandemic, weekly programmes were successful in supporting governments to increase IFA supplementation coverage. * There remains a paucity of data on adolescent health outcomes which makes the design, implementation and monitoring of adolescent health projects particularly difficult. * Although school-based delivery models are effective at the population level, reaching adolescents who do not attend school - who are often at higher risk - remains a significant challenge. Governments should prioritise reaching these isolated groups in order to meet public health policy objectives.