Milk Matters: A literature review of pastoralist nutrition and programming responses

Children that live in pastoralist areas of Africa are increasingly referred to as some of the most nutritionally vulnerable in the world. In Somali Region Ethiopia, levels of global acute malnutrition among young children are regularly reported to rise above 15%; the level defined as a nutritional emergency by the World Health Organization. Yet, from work going back many decades in the Region, we know that animal milk; one of the most nutritionally complete foods in the world, plays an extremely important role in the diets of these children. Whilst there is considerable research and early warning literature that highlights the importance of livestock and livestock products for the income and the dietary intake of pastoralists in Somali Region, there is little work that describes the distribution of livestock-derived products such as milk within households or the use of such products by vulnerable groups. Particularly, the approach used by this study explores the link between animal products and nutrition of infants and young children by seeking out local views and perspectives.
Conducted in Shinile and Liben Zones of Somali Region, this study aimed to ask pastoralist women and men what they think about the important causes of child malnutrition, links between child nutritional status and milk supply, and ‘best bet’ interventions for addressing malnutrition in their communities. It used recognized participatory methods such as matrix scoring, seasonal calendars and ranking to produce detailed information on how young children were fed, the reasons behind the choice of foods used, and on seasonal trends and relationships.