Nutrition surveillance in Bangladesh: a useful tool for policy planning at the local and national levels
Bloem, M.W.; Hye, A.; Gorstein, J.; Wijnroks, M.; Hall, G.; Matzger, H.; Sommer, A.
Food and Nutrition Bulletin 16(2): 131-138
1995
ISSN/ISBN: 0379-5721 Document Number: 300383
A nutrition surveillance system (the NSP) was established in Bangladesh in April l990. Since then the NSP has demonstrated an ability to provide regular and dependable information on the prevalence of undernutrition and morbidity in children under 5 years of age, household socioeconomic characteristics, food prices, and the extent of distress at household and community levels from data collected every 2 months by non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the government in selected rural areas and urban slums in all regions of the country. The system was established as a bottom-up surveillance system based on NGO-specific teams with a continuous central quality control system to ensure the collection of reliable data. The NGOs use it for the continuous monitoring of their development programmes and to identify mechanisms through which services can be delivered most effectively. The model is worthy of consideration for replication in other countries in the world.