Market-Based Solutions to Promote Non-Emergency Nutrition in Ethiopia

Malnutrition is one of most significant problems in Ethiopia. Of all Sub-Saharan African countries, Ethiopia has the second highest rate of malnutrition and at least 53 percent of the country’s mortality is attributed to malnutrition. Ethiopians primarily suffer from four major forms of malnutrition: acute and chronic malnutrition, iron deficiency anemia (IDA), vitamin A deficiency (VAD), and iodine deficiency disorder (IDD). Thirty two percent of all childhood deaths, for example, are attributed to VAD, which is also the leading cause for preventable blindness. In addition, only 4.2 percent of Ethiopian households consume iodized salt and 54 percent of children between 6-59 months and 27 percent women between 15-49 years old are anemic.

It is in this context, that TechnoServe (TNS) sought the assistance of a SIPA team to explore the possibilities for developing a market-based solution to non-emergency nutrition in Ethiopia, recognizing the critical importance and need for such an intervention. The project was focused on market-based solutions to non-emergency nutrition in Ethiopia.  The first task was to recommend “solutions to non-emergency nutrition,” which TNS clarified to mean solutions to chronic malnutrition. The SIPA team consequently narrowed the geographic scope of the project to include areas in Ethiopia that suffered from chronic, but not acute, malnutrition. TNS also clarified the concept of “market-driven solutions.” As they explained to the SIPA team, market-driven solutions, as opposed to aid-based solutions, are free from donor handouts and exist within the supply and demand of domestic and international markets.