The project, which began in september 2022 and concluded in september 2023, focused on combating food insecurity, benefiting around 2,400 families with children between the ages of zero and five who face food insecurity and malnutrition in the communities of Apaneca, Ataco, San Julián, and Guaymango.

The geographic areas served were selected because of their priority in food insecurity and because of FUSAL's base of community volunteers to make the interventions more effective and sustainable.  In addition, multidimensional poverty and the impact of food insecurity in the area were considered as key factors in the selection of beneficiary families.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Program (WFP) estimated that by 2022, 900,000 people in El Salvador will be in a food crisis or emergency, with one of the most affected areas being the department of Ahuachapán. By 2023, they warned of acute food insecurity in 18 famine hotspots in 22 countries, including El Salvador.

It is suggested that by the end of 2023, the number of food insecure salvadorans will reach 1 million people, especially in Sonsonate, Usulután and Cuscatlán.

Key actions of this project intervention included the mobilization of fortified foods, the training of community volunteers for nutritional monitoring and surveillance, and the equipping of Nutripuntos to assess the nutritional status of children.

"We strengthened the knowledge of 120 community volunteers, enabling them to provide follow-up and nutritional counseling to families. We also equipped 75 Nutripuntos with tools for height and weight monitoring and food preparation kits, which have been fundamental in promoting healthy eating habits to guarantee children's nutrition", said Jenniffer Morán, Head of Operations of FUSAL's Primera Infancia Program.

Each volunteer received an informative guide that will help them advise families and improve their knowledge of nutritional surveillance, taking measurements, identifying risks in pregnancy and breastfeeding. The project equipped the 75 Nutripuntos with tools such as scales, height and infant meters, as well as a kit for food preparation workshops. This is vital for counseling on healthy eating habits and monitoring the nutritional health of young children, helping to detect malnutrition problems early and promoting healthy growth.

"Thanks to working together with 3M El Salvador, in 2022 we were able to distribute 786,888 rations of fortified food with a value of more than $191 thousand, just after the passage of Tropical Storm Julia that affected many families in the west of the country. This food was received by 2440 vulnerable families with children from zero to five years of age. This project demonstrates the positive impact that can be achieved when the community, organizations and volunteers work together to address critical problems such as food insecurity and child malnutrition", said Karla Segovia, executive director of FUSAL.

In addition to the delivery of the fortified food, FUSAL and 3M gave community volunteers a recipe booklet with nutritious preparations using the donated food - rice with textured soy - as a base, providing healthy and delicious options for families. 

Tadeo Martínez, country manager of 3M El Salvador, highlighted the importance of supporting the most vulnerable population. "We are pleased at 3M to know that we are reaching these families who were in a situation of vulnerability in terms of food security, achieving the purpose of this project.  In this work, we have the support of FUSAL and its network of volunteers, who have extensive experience in this type of initiative".

Translated by: A.M