USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (USAID/BHA) remains at the forefront of the humanitarian community’s efforts to provide nutrition assistance to vulnerable populations around the world. Through its efforts to prevent and treat child and maternal wasting, the deadliest form of malnutrition; promote maternal, infant, and young child nutrition in crisis contexts; and empower partners by improving access to high-quality data on nutrition, USAID/BHA continues to lead the sector by combining technical expertise with programming, operational support, and innovation. USAID/BHA-supported nutrition programs are community-based, linked to local health systems, and utilize evidence-based approaches that decrease morbidity and mortality resulting from malnutrition.
In FY 2023, USAID/BHA supported more than 50 partners, including nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and UN agencies, to address nutrition needs in nearly 40 countries, including Afghanistan, Madagascar, Nigeria, and Sudan. The majority of USAID/BHA’s nutrition support occurs in Africa’s Eastern and Sahel regions, two areas where recurring droughts have severely affected communities’ abilities to produce and purchase diverse foods, thereby increasing the risk of malnutrition among vulnerable populations.
