Training Women to Help Women: Mother-to-Mother Support around Infant and Young Child Feeding and Related Maternal Nutrition in Resource Poor Settings

Mother-to-mother support groups (MtMSG) are groups of women who come together to learn about and discuss issues around infant and young child feeding (IYCF) and related maternal nutrition (rMN). One member acts as the facilitator and is trained on basic IYCF and rMN technical information and group facilitation techniques. The mother facilitator is responsible for engaging group members in discussions about IYCF and rMN and providing basic health messages in an interactive, participatory manner. Review of the literature provides evidence that women are more likely to try and then continue optimal maternal dietary and infant and young child feeding practices if they recognize the benefits, believe they can overcome perceived and actual barriers and feel supported. Since 2008, CARE has implemented the Window of Opportunity, a maternal, infant and young child nutrition project, in resource-poor, rural communities in five countries. Through this project, CARE has developed a training curriculum for MtMSG facilitators. This curriculum is unique in that it goes beyond providing information on technical content pertaining to IYCF and rMN and instead, teaches facilitators active listening, problem solving and facilitation skills. By the end of 2011 the project trained approximately 600 MtMSG facilitators in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nicaragua, Peru and Sierra Leone. Ongoing program monitoring and evaluation indicates that CARE's MtMSG training helps facilitators understand the concept of support, increases their confidence and ability to provide support to other women and provides skills on how to engage women in group activities around IYCF and rMN.