Final Evaluation of the Joint Resilience Project in Kassala

Weather-related shocks in Kassala, Sudan, regularly affect the resilience of communities and their food security conditions. The Joint Resilience Project (JPR), designed to prevent malnutrition in order to build resilience to droughts and floods, opted to measure stunting to determine whether improved maternal and child health and nutrition, as well as enhanced adaptive capacity were achieved. The initial focus on reducing malnutrition rather than building resilience reduced overall effectiveness, although the evaluation noted this shortcoming was corrected at mid-term. The evaluation recommends providing feedback on results to the 75 beneficiary communities, the four targeted localities and the Kassala Government, consolidating project results by continuing collaboration among FAO, WFP and UNICEF in the field, by strengthening the capacities of national stakeholders specifically through enhanced soft skills, and by capitalizing on lessons learned from the JRP for similar projects in the future.