Monitoring of a Pilot Micronutrient Powder Home Fortification Program in the Kyrgyz Republic

Abstract

To address the high prevalence of anemia, in 2009, UNICEF launched a pilot micronutrient powder (MNP) home fortification program for children 6–24 months old in the Talas region of the Kyrgyz Republic. Children received 30 MNP sachets every 2 months from government health clinics. Two representative household surveys were conducted at 6‐months (n=636) and 12‐ months (n=543) following the launch of the program, to monitor program performance in rural Talas. Monitoring results were positive. Almost all caretakers had heard about the MNP product (100.0% at 6‐mo.; 99.6% at 12‐mo.) and had received ≥1 package of 30 MNP sachets (99.3% at 6‐mo.; 98.9% at 12‐mo.). The majority of caretakers reported that their child is currently taking MNP (84.7% at 6‐mo.; 71.2% at 12‐mo.). Self‐reported adherence to MNP was high. Out of the 30 sachets provided for 2 months, average consumption for the previous 2 months was 29.2 sachets at 6‐mo., and 24.4 sachets at 12‐mo. Complete adherence (use of all 30 sachets during the previous 2 months) was found among 60.4% of the children at 6‐mo. and among 49.5% at 12‐mo. Both surveys found that caretaker satisfaction and acceptance of MNP was high, and the caretakers’ knowledge of and practices pertaining to MNP use were found to be satisfactory. These survey results provided evidence to support the national scale‐up of this intervention. Source of research support: UNICEF.