The impact of a Solar Market Garden programme on dietary diversity, women's nutritional status and micronutrient levels in Kalalé district of northern Benin

Abstract

Objective: To examine the impacts of a Solar Market Garden 1-year solar-powered drip irrigation (SMG) programme in Kalalé district of northern Benin on mothers' nutritional status and micronutrient levels.

Design: Using a quasi-experimental design, sixteen villages were assigned to four groups: (i) SMG women's groups (WG); (ii) comparison WG; (iii) SMG non-WG (NWG); and (iv) comparison NWG. Difference-in-differences (DID) estimates were used to assess impacts on mothers' food consumption, diversity, BMI, prevalence of underweight (BMI < 18·5 kg/m2) and anaemia, and deficiencies of iron (ID) and vitamin A (VAD).

Setting: Kalalé district, northern Benin.

Participants: Non-pregnant mothers aged 15-49 years (n 1737).

Results: The SMG programme significantly increased mothers' intake of vegetables (DID = 25·31 percentage points (pp); P < 0·01), dietary diversity (DID = 0·74; P < 0·01) and marginally increased their intake of flesh foods (DID = 10·14 pp; P < 0·1). Mean BMI was significantly increased among SMG WG compared with the other three groups (DID = 0·44 kg/m2; P < 0·05). The SMG programme also significantly decreased the prevalence of anaemia (DID = 12·86 pp; P < 0·01) but no impacts were found for the prevalence of underweight, ID and VAD.

Conclusions: Improving mothers' dietary intake and anaemia prevalence supports the need to integrate gender-based agriculture to improve nutritional status. However, it may take more than a year, and additional nutrition and health programmes, to impact the prevalence of maternal underweight, ID and VAD.

Keywords: Africa; Anaemia; Iron status; Solar-powered irrigation; Vitamin A status; Women’s dietary diversity; Women’s underweight.

Fig. 1

Flowchart showing the number of women aged 15–49 years with information on BMI, dietary diversity, Hb, iron and vitamin A status at baseline (January–March 2014) and after the 1-year intervention (February–March 2015) in Kalalé district, northern Benin (SMG, Solar Market Garden; WG, women’s group; NWG, non-women’s group; Comp., comparison; HDDS, Household Dietary Diversity Score; vit. A, vitamin A)

Fig. 2

Percentage change in the number of households that consumed individual food groups in the past 24 h at baseline (January–March 2014) and after the 1-year intervention (February–March 2015) among SMG WG () and the other three groups (), Kalalé district, northern Benin (n 1274). **P < 0·05, ***P < 0·01 for DID estimate adjusted for age, household size, latrines, electricity connection, health-care insecurity, socio-economic status and type of group (SMG, Solar Market Garden; WG, women’s group; DID, difference-in-differences)

Fig. 3

Percentage change in number of women who consumed individual food groups in the past 24 h at baseline (January–March 2014) and after the 1-year intervention (February–March 2015) among SMG WG () and the other three groups (), Kalalé district, northern Benin (n 1210). *P < 0·1, **P < 0·05, ***P < 0·01 for DID estimate adjusted for age, household size, latrines, electricity connection, health-care insecurity, socio-economic status and type of group (SMG, Solar Market Garden; WG, women’s group; DID, difference-in-differences)