An evaluation of the community strategies of the national food and nutrition commission

There have been significant strides in combating malnutrition in Zambia, particularly undernutrition
among low income groups, women and children. The country was one of the first
signatories to improving national nutritional status by scaling-up nutrition interventions, with
emphasis on the First 1000 Most Critical Days Programme (the period from conception up to
two years of life). Zambia has since reduced the levels of stunting among children under the
age of five years from 45% to 40%. The Government through the National Food and
Nutrition Commission (NFNC) also planned to reach out to school children and young adults
with up-to-date nutrition information that motivates behaviour change communication and
improved nutritional status.
This study was undertaken to evaluate the communication strategies the NFNC uses to
communicate and reach out to the public. The study used both qualitative and quantitative
methods in gathering the data. 100 respondents from the five wards in Lusaka‟s Matero
Constituency systematically selected were interviewed and 80 self-administered questionnaires
were purposively distributed. The researcher used this method for the NFNC staff, and
Government officials from key line ministries. The study also examined five opinion leaders‟
perceptions towards feeding habits through in-depth interviews. The researcher used the manual
method for qualitative data gathered from the documentary evidence, interviews, as well as
participant observation and the computer, where the Statistical Package of Social Sciences
(SPSS) software was applied for descriptive statistics and frequencies of distribution.
The study established that all respondents were aware of the communication strategies the
NFNC uses to communicate nutrition messages. However, there was a variation in responses
when respondents were asked to determine the effectiveness of the communication strategies
and the messages used. 42.5% indicated that communication strategies used were less
effective, 22.5% were not sure, and 20% stated that they were effective, while 13.8%
indicated that they were not effective. Only 1.3% said they were very effective. Equally, 80%
stated that the messages and language used had failed to change people‟s beliefs, attitudes,
and behaviour towards malnutrition. The study recommended that the NFNC needed to use
all media tools in its communication strategies. Further, the study recommended that tailoredmade
messages and user-friendly language be used for specific targeted audience so that the
communication strategies can be effective.