Multiple Micronutrient Supplements in Humanitarian Emergencies

In recent years there has been significant global momentum on progressing women’s and adolescent girls’ nutrition. Daily multiple micronutrient supplements (MMS), received through antenatal care platforms, have received particular attention. Women and girls are disproportionately affected by conflict and disasters due to their increased nutritional needs and vulnerabilities. However, there is limited consolidated information on the extent to which women and adolescent girls receive MMS in humanitarian emergencies. Where MMS programming exists in these contexts, details on implementation and barriers to successful scale-up are often lacking. This report aims to fill some of these important knowledge gaps.

Information for this report was sourced from a survey, two in-depth country case studies, and additional key informant interviews. We address gaps in our knowledge of the use of MMS in humanitarian emergencies through four main sections:

• In Section 1 we provide a brief background to MMS, summarising the key evidence and policies, we define how we describe humanitarian emergencies, and we summarise the humanitarian system for nutrition programming.
• In Section 2 we present the results of a survey to provide a snapshot of where MMS is being used in humanitarian emergencies and by whom. 
• In Section 3 we provide a short summary of two case studies on MMS in humanitarian emergencies: one from Somalia and one from Pakistan.
• In Section 4 we pull together the key themes regarding barriers to, and opportunities for, the use of MMS in humanitarian emergencies. 

This is part of a collection of three related resources on the topic of MMS in humanitarian emergencies. The related resources include two accompanying case studies from Somalia and Pakistan. 

Watch a video providing an overview of the report.