Sustainability of food and nutrition security policy during presidential transitions

Abstract Developing countries with democratic governments periodically experience presidential transitions that affect political and institutional performance. Unforeseen uncertainties during transitions are not faced strategically and interrupt collaboration among country teams expected to jointly implement policies, including policies intended to contribute to food and nutrition security. In some low- and middle-income countries, these obstacles result in persistent hunger, malnutrition, and death mainly affecting the most vulnerable populations and contributing to unequal human development. We aimed to understand what mechanisms determined sustainability of Food and Nutrition Security Policy (FNSP) during presidential transitions, from socio-political and nutritional perspectives, in a Central American country that experiences a change of president every four years. Purposeful criterion and snowball sampling were used to recruit 52 policy actors from all relevant sectors and levels, elected or appointed, that had contributed to implementing the FNSP adopted since 2006. Data from semi-structured interviews were analyzed using open, axial, and selective coding. Results were verified using content analysis for obtaining emerging themes in news, speeches, and documents. Twenty-four forces simultaneously shaped a dynamic process determining sustainability during transitions. The forces for sustaining FNSP were Backed Up, Beneficial, Championed, Importance, Institutionally Sound, Owned, Sensitive, Shared, Steady Resources, Strategic, Transition Effect, and Trusted. The forces for not sustaining FNSP were Antagonistic Underlying Structure, Campaigning, Dysfunctional Transition, Fractioned, Haphazard, Insensitive, Irrelevant, Misrepresentation, Neglected, Rivalry, Unsound Institutions, and Unsteady Resources. These forces determining FNSP sustainability during transitions were molded by the emerging reasons for sustaining and for not sustaining policy actions as reported by the study participants. The forces favored or impeded the sustainability of an action or part of it. The forces operated at all levels and sectors, but forces affected actions differently in these. The forces did not compete, but combinations of them brought about outcomes that policy actors in charge and their collaborators could intentionally influence. The potential of forces to shape sustainability of FSNP depended on interacting actors responding to emerging events within specific contexts. Roles performed by civil society, governmental officials, and international cooperation were critical for policy sustainability during transitions. These results are consistent with Lewin’s Force Field Theory on the complex dynamics embedded in intersecting forces within contexts and identify the specific forces that were operating. Although the 24 forces were identified in one context, the set of forces likely captures the range of forces that may operate in other similar political contexts. The knowledge that such forces may be operating could be helpful in ensuring sustainability of policies in the future. Actors and other stakeholders can identify the predominant specific forces operating for a policy and activate or promote the forces that enhance sustainability and deactivate or suppress the forces that inhibit sustainability. Foreseeing or creating opportunities to activate (or deactivate) and promote (or suppress) forces during the early stages of a presidential transition could help sustain policies and related practices that benefit food and nutrition security.