From Dietary Guidelines to Learning Policy Instruments

Abstract

This independent project reviews monitoring and evaluation (M&E) provisions in selected African Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDGs). It examines 11 guidelines listed on the FAO dietary-guidelines platform and assesses the extent to which they include FBDG-specific M&E arrangements that could support implementation, learning and future revision. The study distinguishes between what guidelines say on paper and whether there is external evidence that measurement and evaluation have been operationalised and used to inform adaptation. It argues that FBDGs can function not only as communication tools but also as learning policy instruments when a feedback loop from implementation to revision is in place. Countries covered: Benin, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Zambia.