Dear all,
As a link up to a potential school-feeding program, we are looking into assessing the nutritional status of children 6-13 (up to 18) years in remote areas in Northern part of the Republic of Congo (Brazzaville). The majority of the school goers are from indigenous (?autochtones? - pygmy) communities. Our teams in the field have observed signs of acute malnutrition (wasting) and a general poor food security situation. To ensure that the potential school-feeding programme provides an integrated SF response including appropriate rations, we would like to undertake an assessment with partners on the current nutrition situation among the children.

However, given the current limitations of protocols for measuring malnutrition in children > 5 years, we are consulting this forum for any further guidance. As per the HTP, malnutrition in older children should be assessed by using BMI for age (presented in Z scores). However, due to the nature of the setting and the interplay of stunting ? we are discussing the best way to go about this assessment. Would anyone have any ideas or experience in this? Given that many of these schools are in the forest and may have reduced accessibility ? what sampling approach would be recommended for the nutrition assessment? We are looking at roughly 40-45 schools with probably around 4.500 children. Any suggestions and ideas are most welcome. Many thanks!