The CDSF regional office in Tigray conducted a 4-day Nutrition Sensitive Agriculture (NSA) training in Wukro town from December 6-9, 2018 for members of the Master Facilitators Development (MFD) nutrition cohort.

Twenty-three technical experts (18 male and 5 female) including 17 experts from agriculture implementing agencies, three zonal CDOs and three regional CDSs participated in the training.

The purpose of the training was to build the capacity of regional experts so that they effectively serve as master NSA facilitators.

In his opening remarks, CDSF Regional Team Leader Ato Hagos Dori welcomed participants to the training. He emphasized the role that a nutrition-focused agriculture plan can play in improving nutrition and health outcomes. Hagos expressed his belief that the training would enable participants to identify nutritional gaps in the community and to be able to select technologies that bring about the desired outcome.

NSAC Senior Nutrition Specialist/Manager Ato Alem Hadera facilitated the training.

Topics covered during the workshop included: why nutrition-sensitive agriculture matters; essential nutrition concepts; essential concepts in agriculture and food security; agriculture-to-nutrition pathways, developing a seasonal calendar, behavior change concepts for NSA and designing nutrition-sensitive activities and planning.

During the training, the facilitator applied adult learning principles and methodologies

Participants also prepared nutrition sensitive action plan for 2012EFY during the training.

At the end of the training, ten NSA master facilitators were selected from among the participants to form the regional Nutrition Capacity Development Cohort (NCDC) that will be responsible to assist the regional Nutrition Case Team (NCT)and AGP PCU in identifying future training needs and provide technical support.