Intervention

The leading food and nutrition interventions in emergency settings include rations of general food distribution (GFD) and Ready-To-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF). Due to the lack of RUTFs, lipid-based supplements, and fortified options, the food package design ASEEL provides is consistent with items that approximate the nutrition and energy requirements of a well-balanced diet the recipient population needs. Also factored in with the design of the packages are the dietary considerations, environmental conditions, familiarity with a food item, storage specifications, and preparation methods.

Emergency Child Relief Package Contents

Flour

Rice

Beans

Dal

Sugar

Oil

Milk

Baby Diapers

Baby Cerelac

Medical Technical Experts

Dr. Naqib

Virginia, US

Dr. Naqib is the primary lecturer of Doctoral Public Health Leadership for Health Equity and the Management of Global Public Health Emergencies as an executive board member of EDRA. In addition, he was the Senior Emergency Coordinator as part of the Global Emergency Response Team, responding to emergencies in their onset and ensuring coordination and scale-up of UNICEF supported programs.

Dr. Rabia

Maryland, US

Dr.Rabia is a medical doctor with a master’s degree in public health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Her area of focus is Biostatistics and Epidemiology, with a Maternal and Child Health certificate from Johns Hopkins University. Currently, she works as an associate researcher at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Dr. Tawheedullah

Kabul, Afghanistan

Dr. Tawheedullah’s extensive education includes the following training and certifications: Medical Technology (MT), Doctor of Medicine (MD), Postgraduate Medical Degree (RMP, PGD), and a Diploma in Child Health (DCH). He has experience as a pediatrician working for Salaam Hospital and JMC Hospital and three years of experience in university teaching. In addition, he holds an MSF (ITFC Nutrition Specialist) that equips him to assess malnutrition while adhering to nutrition protocols and guidelines.

Dr. Uzra

Bamyan, Afghanistan

Dr. Uzra Yaqubi holds a bachelor of Midwifery with more than six years’ experience improving maternal and infant well-being. While working as a nutritionist at Bamyan Regional Hospital and Baran NGO, she carefully assessed and planned diets based on individual nutritional needs crafting her expertise in the field of child nutrition.

Monitoring

Assess endpoint measures (MUAC 11.5 Cm)

Target geographic locations based on population and quality of existing aid

Ensuring the GFD objectives of the GFD are realistic and achievable.

Methods

Step 1:

Identification

The ASEEL team first identifies provinces, then focuses on districts and villages to identify children who need assistance. In addition, the team identifies healthcare centers at an equal distance to maximize coverage areas.

Step 2:

Coordination and Supply

’The ASEEL team coordinates with health centers by supplying food packages. Healthcare workers caring for the patients use their professional discretion to triage eligible children using visual screenings for nutritional assessment and correlated health complications. For example, measuring the mid-upper arm circumference, known as the MUAC test, may be the best predictor of mortality in at-risk children (MUAC of <115 mm).

Transparency and Accountability

All participants in the ASEEL Child Relief Grand Challenge, including technical contributors such as doctors, campaign owners, partner organizations, and volunteers, are provided with bi-weekly updates, including financial data and how many food packages have been distributed. Also, financial records from every report will be made public in real-time.

For universal transparency throughout the platform and to track every dollar, the Emergency Response team developed version ASEEL ER V1.0, providing Omid (Hope) IDs using the Omid card to track each beneficiary. The Omid IDs are pre-registered as soon as a beneficiary is identified.

The second version, ASEEL ER V2.0, currently being developed by the ASEEL team, has two additional modules: one for certified vendors (Vendor Module) designed for local supermarkets to distribute ASEEL food packages in the community. The other (Lifesavers Module) will enable pre-approved volunteers, including Afghan youth, to use the platform to register beneficiaries, which will provide life-saving relief at the local and district levels.