Rural Support Programmes Network (RSPN), Pakistan
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The Agency Fund – CHWs vs Phone Casts for Child Growth in Pakistan

The research project is going to be implemented in Tando Muhammad Khan Sindh in collaboration with the Institute of Development and Economic Alternatives (IDEAS). This research project introduces an innovative approach to home-based growth monitoring (HBGM) that involves installing a growth poster inside the home, allowing caregivers and parents to measure their children's height and weight and track their linear growth over time in 1800 households. The growth standards of the World Health Organization (WHO) from 2007 are used to compare children's development with healthy norms. Caregivers with limited resources often do not receive timely feedback on their child's growth trajectory, which can hinder their understanding of how different childcare inputs affect growth. This issue is especially prevalent in impoverished areas where many children may be short for their age, and the reference child that caregivers use may also be stunted. Regular visits to local clinics may provide feedback on child development, but these visits can be infrequent and costly for caregivers who have to travel far. To monitor the child’s growth in the rural community the Community Resource Person will install growth charts in 1800 households in Tando Muhammad Khan and will monitor the growth of the targeted group for one year. The project is funded by Global Development Incubator Solution and the duration is from March 2023 to May 2024. NRSP is the implementing partner in Tando Muhammad Khan.