CLA in Scaling Up Agri-Nutrition BCC: The Kenya Crops and Dairy Journey

This case highlights the Feed the Future Kenya Crops and Dairy Market Systems (KCDMS) Activity’s adaptive strategy of leveraging media platforms to disseminate behavior change communication (BCC) messages that complement its face-to-face training of trainers (TOT) approach to improve nutrition in 150,000+ farming households.

KCDMS’ initial strategy was to internally collaborate to offer agri-nutrition TOT to private sector partners who would then integrate it into extension messaging to affiliated farmers. The standard agri-nutrition training material was developed through external collaboration with members of Kenya’s national level nutrition technical working group. KCDMS quickly learned that partners lacked incentives to promote messages perceived as outside of their business interests. Even with additional nutrition-focused partners, KCDMS projected that they would only reach 24,800 farmers using the original TOT approach.

KCDMS adapted their approach by collaborating with Talking Books to modify standard print materials into audio content and by leveraging radio to expand their outreach. This enabled the project to layer agri-nutrition BCC through complementary strategies. As a result of evidence-based learning, continuous collaboration internally and externally, and a mindset primed for adapting, KCDMS has trained 87,000 direct participants to date who are active in KCDMS-supported agri-economic activities. In addition, the project reached 5 million individuals indirectly whose agri-nutrition knowledge and outcomes are comparable to those who received face-to-face training.