FIAN-Girls Nutrition Ambassadors

The Project

To anchor our efforts and initiatives around healthy nutrition and hygiene in schools, we work with a system of ‘ambassadors’ called the ‘Filles Ambassadrices de Nutrition’ or FIAN. In each partner school, about four girls take on this role. Together with the responsible teachers, they help oversee the quality of meals in the school canteen and the cleanliness and hygiene of the sanitary facilities.

Objective

Engaging the FIAN can ensure the pupils’ meals are balanced and healthy. Thus, the project contributes to the fight against malnutrition. The FIAN also serve as role models for their fellow pupils.

Project Description

Our nutritionist regularly trains the cooking mothers and women who sell food at school on healthy nutrition and hygiene. The FIAN, selected and trained by us, monitor with the responsible teachers whether the cooking mothers and sellers comply with the learned measures. They also help teachers maintain cleanliness and hygiene at school. Finally, they plan the maintenance of the school garden together with their classmates.

Results and Developments

The FIAN’s efforts are paying off. The quality and balanced composition of the meals have increased. The sanitary facilities are intensively used and well-maintained.

Several schools still need access to drinking water, which makes the work for the FIAN challenging. Maintaining cleanliness and hygiene and a vegetable garden is very difficult to achieve without water nearby.

The FAN project (Femmes Ambassadrices de Nutrition) is the ‘adult’ version of the FIAN project. The FAN have a similar assignment as the FIAN but in their villages and communities.