Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on food availability and affordability: an interrupted time series analysis in Ghana.

BACKGROUND: In Africa, approx. 675 million people were at risk of food insecurity. COVID-19 pandemic is likely to have exacerbated this situation, by damaging populations' access to and affordability of foods. This study is aimed at estimating the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on availability and prices of essential food commodities at 20 large markets in Ghana. METHODS: Data on food availability and food retail prices collected through weekly market-level data during the period from July 2017 to September 2020 were used in this study. We performed interrupted time-series analyses and estimated the percentage increases between the observed and predicted food prices by food group and by region to assess the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on food prices. RESULTS: As a result, the impact of COVID-19 on food availability was limited. However, the results of interrupted time-series analyses indicate a significant increase in overall mean food prices in Greater Accra, Eastern and Upper East regions. It was also found that mean price of starchy roots, tubers and plantains significantly increased across regions. DISCUSSION: The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on food availability and prices was significant but varied by food type and regions in Ghana. Continuous monitoring and responses are critical to maintain food availability and affordability.

A Qualitative Analysis of Program Fidelity and Perspectives of Educators and Parents after Two Years of the Girls' Iron-Folate Tablet Supplementation (GIFTS) Program in Ghanaian Secondary Schools.

BACKGROUND: To address the burden of anemia in adolescent girls in Ghana, the Girls' Iron-Folate Tablet Supplementation (GIFTS) program was established in 2017. An evaluation found that although iron and folic acid (IFA) supplementation reached nearly all adolescent girls in schools during year 1, most girls received fewer than the minimum effective number of tablets over the school year. Barrier analyses highlighted schools as drivers of adherence, though information was incomplete on the reasons for the disparities among schools. Information was also lacking on the implementation of health and nutrition education. OBJECTIVES: At the start of year 3 of an integrated adolescent anemia prevention program with IFA supplementation, the present study sought to illuminate differences in program fidelity among schools and across time and potential factors that drive such differences. METHODS: After stratifying by school level, size, geographic location, and intake adherence during year 1, 16 schools were purposively selected. For each school, semistructured key informant interviews were conducted with 1 coordinator at the district level, 3 educators at the school level, and 1 parent leader. Following thematic analysis methods, recorded and transcribed interviews were coded and organized into deductive and inductive themes. RESULTS: Limited training, challenges during distribution of IFA, lack of incentives, and inconsistent health and nutrition education diminished program fidelity. Strong supply chain, widespread awareness promotion, improved acceptability, and intrinsically motivated educators improved program fidelity. After 2 y of implementation, schools had made program adaptations, and widespread changes in attitudes and beliefs about the IFA tablets had improved their acceptability. However, limitations remained related to supply chain, program ownership, communication between health and education sectors, training, motivation, and resources. CONCLUSIONS: The fidelity of Ghana's GIFTS program is strengthened by its supply chain, acceptability, and motivated stakeholders; however, training, curricula, clear communication, and incentives could improve it.

Lessons learned from implementing the pilot Micronutrient Powder Initiative in four districts in Ghana.

BACKGROUND: Micronutrient deficiencies affect many children in low-income settings due primarily to over-reliance on complementary foods low in nutrients. Home-fortification (HF) could improve children's diet quality in these settings. The Ghana Health Service, supported by UNICEF, integrated the pilot Micronutrient Powder Initiative (MPI) into Child Welfare Clinic (CWC) services in four districts (Tain, Tolon, Talensi, and Ho West), whereby micronutrient powder (MNP) is supplied for HF for children aged 6-23 months attending CWCs. This study's main aim was to identify the facilitators, barriers and "lessons learned" after 2 years of program implementation. METHODS: This was a qualitative cross-sectional study. MNP distributed and children enrolled were obtained from program records. Primary data were collected from November to December 2019 and included, by district: interviews with senior program staff; key informant interviews and focus group discussion with caregivers in each of 6 sub-districts; and discussions workshop with frontline staff from at least 10 health facilities. Besides field notes, all interactions were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Qualitative data were analyzed using NVivo10. RESULTS: The MPI remains on-going, with about 2.5 million MNP sachets distributed to nearly 30,000 children within 90 district-months. Caregivers generally accept the MNP; reported positive responses in children include: "increased appetite", "less frequent illnesses, "increased energy/strength", "increased weight", and "walking independently relatively early". Main facilitators are: generally regular MNP availability; increased patronage of CWC services; various contact points for supplying MNPs; fairly strong social mobilization strategy; good integration of MPI with CWC services; "one-on-one" counselling for caregivers reporting side effects; and tracing caregivers to address concerns and monitor adherence. Main barriers are: lack of counselling materials; caregivers' suspicions towards the program; absence of refresher training for frontline workers; and perceived MNP side-effects. Key lessons learned are: incorporating MNPs into CWC services is feasible, acceptable, and could reduce child micronutrient deficiencies in program districts; and MPI's success requires stronger community sensitization, equipping frontline workers to advise caregivers and manage side-effects, and consciously identifying and managing logistical challenges. CONCLUSION: Further research is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of the MPI in reducing micronutrient deficiencies among 6-23-months-olds in Ghana.

The potential role of micronutrient powders to improve complementary feeding practices.

Micronutrient powder (MNP) interventions are often integrated within infant and young child feeding (IYCF) programmes to improve micronutrient intake from complementary foods. This review aims to describe country experiences with MNP interventions and their impact on IYCF practices and develop a framework for how MNP may strengthen complementary feeding practices. A literature review and key informant interviews were used to gather data on complementary feeding practices in MNP programme design, implementation, and evaluation. Findings from 11 MNP programmes in different geographic regions reinforced the potential of MNP interventions to add renewed focus and resources to existing IYCF programmes. MNP plays an important role in ensuring adequate micronutrient intake and reducing anaemia in young children. In some programmes, MNP users had improved IYCF practices, such as breastfeeding to 24 months and children receiving complementary foods with adequate consistency, frequency, and diversity. Our framework highlights how behaviour change communication is an essential component for influencing household actions, not only to generate demand and promote correct and sustained MNP use but also raise awareness of IYCF practices. The actions at MNP policy, delivery, and behaviour change communication levels collectively influence household IYCF practices, and formative research and monitoring and evaluation serve to inform programme design and optimize impact. In conclusion, a limited but growing body of evidence suggests that MNP interventions can contribute to improve complementary feeding practices. However, there is scope for improvement even among integrated MNP and IYCF programmes in order to realize the full potential of MNP interventions for IYCF practices.

Experiences and lessons learned for planning and supply of micronutrient powders interventions.

Realistic planning for a nutrition intervention is a critical component of implementation, yet effective approaches have been poorly documented. Under the auspices of "The Micronutrient Powders Consultation: Lessons Learned for Operational Guidance," 3 working groups were formed to summarize experiences and lessons across countries regarding micronutrient powders (MNP) interventions for young children. This paper focuses on programmatic experiences in the planning stages of an MNP intervention, encompassing assessment, enabling environment and adaptation, as well as considerations for supply. Methods included a review of published and grey literature, key informant interviews, and deliberations throughout the consultation process. We found that assessments helped justify adopting an MNP intervention, but these assessments were often limited by their narrow scope and inadequate data. Establishing coordinating bodies and integrating MNP into existing policies and programmes have helped foster an enabling environment and support programme stability. Formative research and pilots have been used to adapt MNP interventions to specific contexts, but they have been insufficient to inform scale-up. In terms of supply, most countries have opted to procure MNP through international suppliers, but this still requires understanding and navigating the local regulatory environment at the earliest stages of an intervention. Overall, these findings indicate that although some key planning and supply activities are generally undertaken, improvements are needed to plan for effective scale-up. Much still needs to be learned on MNP planning, and we propose a set of research questions that require further investigation.

Household Coverage with Adequately Iodized Salt Varies Greatly between Countries and by Residence Type and Socioeconomic Status within Countries: Results from 10 National Coverage Surveys.

Background: Household coverage with iodized salt was assessed in 10 countries that implemented Universal Salt Iodization (USI).Objective: The objective of this paper was to summarize household coverage data for iodized salt, including the relation between coverage and residence type and socioeconomic status (SES).Methods: A review was conducted of results from cross-sectional multistage household cluster surveys with the use of stratified probability proportional to size design in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Niger, the Philippines, Senegal, Tanzania, and Uganda. Salt iodine content was assessed with quantitative methods in all cases. The primary indicator of coverage was percentage of households that used adequately iodized salt, with an additional indicator for salt with some added iodine. Indicators of risk were SES and residence type. We used 95% CIs to determine significant differences in coverage.Results: National household coverage of adequately iodized salt varied from 6.2% in Niger to 97.0% in Uganda. For salt with some added iodine, coverage varied from 52.4% in the Philippines to 99.5% in Uganda. Coverage with adequately iodized salt was significantly higher in urban than in rural households in Bangladesh (68.9% compared with 44.3%, respectively), India (86.4% compared with 69.8%, respectively), Indonesia (59.3% compared with 51.4%, respectively), the Philippines (31.5% compared with 20.2%, respectively), Senegal (53.3% compared with 19.0%, respectively), and Tanzania (89.2% compared with 57.6%, respectively). In 7 of 8 countries with data, household coverage of adequately iodized salt was significantly higher in high- than in low-SES households in Bangladesh (58.8% compared with 39.7%, respectively), Ghana (36.2% compared with 21.5%, respectively), India (80.6% compared with 70.5%, respectively), Indonesia (59.9% compared with 45.6%, respectively), the Philippines (39.4% compared with 17.3%, respectively), Senegal (50.7% compared with 27.6%, respectively) and Tanzania (80.9% compared with 51.3%, respectively).Conclusions: Uganda has achieved USI. In other countries, access to iodized salt is inequitable. Quality control and regulatory enforcement of salt iodization remain challenging. Notable progress toward USI has been made in Ethiopia and India. Assessing progress toward USI only through household salt does not account for potentially iodized salt consumed through processed foods.