Table 9.1 summarizes the key issues and actions where prog-
ress seems to be stalled and the data gaps that, we hypothesize, are holding back action. For example, we know that progress on reducing anemia is slow. Is this because not enough food-based interventions are being piloted? And is this in turn because food consumption data are not detailed enough to identify people’s patterns of consuming local foods rich in bioavailable iron?
Not all of these data gaps need to be filled by collecting new
data. We identified five ways to fill these gaps: (1) use existing data better, (2) improve the collection of existing data, (3) im- prove data comparability across countries, (4) collect data more frequently, and (5) collect new data where there is not enough for good accountability.
Use existing data better
• Identify and monitor spending on nutrition. Typically these financial data exist but need to be identified, classified, and embedded in monitoring and reporting systems. It is important to build people’s capacity to do these tasks (see,
TABLE 9.1 DATA GAPS THAT ARE CONSTRAINTS TO NEEDED ACTION
Nutrition outcome on which progress is stalled
Anemia Wasting and low birth weight Constraining data gap
Detailed food consumption data identifying iron-rich components of local diets
Solution to adjustment issues in estimates of low birth weight
Overweight and obesity
Detailed food consumption data identifying healthy and nonhealthy diet components, e.g., certain types of fat, food eaten away from home
More survey data on obesity
Key action that may be stalled Constraining data gap Coverage data
Financial tracking data
Scaling up of nutrition-specific programs
Capacity data Cost data
Scaling up of nutrition-sensitive programs
Disaggregated data Financial tracking data Capacity data Cost data
Disaggregated data
Tools and approaches for blended nutrition actions
Better blending, prioritizing, and se- quencing of different nutrition actions
Case studies at national and subnational levels
Data on trade-offs between nutrition- improving strategies and natural resource use
Source: Authors. 68 GLOBAL NUTRITION REPORT 2014 Potential value added of filling data gap Food-based interventions could be better designed to address anemia. Resources for adolescent girl programming could be allocated more effectively.
Interventions could be better designed to adjust the food environment to support healthy choices.
Subgroups that are particularly at risk could be identified; modeled estimates cannot do this.
Potential value added of filling data gap Groups not receiving effective coverage could be identified.
It would be easier to see whether resources are being allocated to the most cost-effective interventions for the most vulnerable.
Feasibility of plans to scale up could be assessed.
Practicality of proposed plans, given available resources, could be assessed. Data would help practitioners scale up nutrition programs at subnational levels. The scope for increasing nutrition-sensitive programming could be assessed. The potential for increased nutrition-sensitive programming could be assessed.
Benefit-cost ratios for nutrition-sensitive programs that reflect the marginal benefits and costs of increased nutrition sensitivity could be developed.
The geographic potential of overlaying nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive approaches could be better understood.
This information would help prevent the risk of “doing everything.” Overlaps between biggest potential impacts and greatest political commitments could be identified.
Lessons could be learned about other countries’ and regions’ successes and failures. Ineffective actions could be avoided.
Nutrition-relevant actions could be made more sustainable, and unnecessary trade-offs with the aims of other sectors could be avoided.
for example, the description of Guatemala’s experience with financial tracking in Panel 7.2).
• Use existing administrative data, especially at subnational levels, to mobilize interest in nutrition and to develop strate- gies. The district-level nutrition profiles for India, described in Panel 4.3, highlight the possible surprises in terms of what is available. The National Evaluation Platform pilots in four Afri- can countries, described in Panel 8.5, also represent a prom- ising approach to using as much existing data as possible.
• Capture existing data on legislation, policy, and spending. The Hunger and Nutrition Commitment Index (HANCI) is a good example of how existing data can be brought together to generate fresh insights.2
• Make better use of existing monitoring and evaluation data. While new data collection is often required for impact assessment, the rapidly growing area of implementation research and evaluation tends to use monitoring and eval- uation systems that could be made even more useful with some modest changes (Menon et al. 2014).
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