Increased Access to Community- and Facility-Based Nutrition Services to reduce malnutrition, morbidity and mortality among children under 5 and PLWs in Jalalaqsi district, Hiraan region, in Somalia. In this project, Mercy-USA is planning to run 1 SC in Jalalaqsi districts. Children with moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) will be referred to the TFSP, while those with uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition (SAM) will be referred to the OTP run by SUADO. Complicated cases of SAM will be treated in the stabilization centre (SC) in Jalalaqsi. Tracing of children that have defaulted from the SC programme will be established and carried out by the SC teams. Provision of therapeutic and supplementary feeding for malnourished children lt5 and PLW will be provided during the programme period. Children not progressing well under treatment will be visited at home for counselling for their mothers. 
Mercy-USA will ensure that nutrition site will receive uninterrupted therapeutic/supplementary food supplies. Mercy-USA will secure agreements with WFP and UNICEF before the start of the program. Mercy-USA will provide staff, technical capacity building for staff and additional monitoring to ensure compliance with nutrition protocols. 
Mercy-USA will train all nutrition staff on SAM and MAM diagnosis and management. Mercy-USA will provide regular joint supervision of the health facilities with MoH and provide refresher trainings for staff.
This programme will promote optimal nutrition and IYCF practices that are beneficial to child survival and development by focusing on the promotion, support and protection of EBF for children and appropriate complementary feeding to build resilience and the nutrition status of infants lt6 months (through EBF) and children 6-24 months. Mothers with children lt6 months will receive messages specific to Exclusive Breastfeeding while mothers with children 6-24 months will receive messages on breastfeeding and complementary feeding. 
Screening for malnutrition among children lt5 and PLW will be conducted primarily at the community level, though this screening will also occur at the health facilities by nutrition staff. Malnourished women and children will be admitted in the relevant OTP or TSFP programme. 
Children in the nutrition programme will receive relevant micronutrient supplementation such as iron/folate and Vitamin A according to IMAM guidelines. Women in prenatal care will receive treatment for anaemia if required as well as micronutrient supplementation, and postnatal women will be supplemented with Vitamin A and treatment of anaemia if required. Additionally, all children admitted in the nutrition programme will receive deworming drugs. In addition, children in the nutrition programme will receive relevant89` micronutrient supplementation such as iron/folate and Vitamin A according to Somalia IMAM guidelines. 
Serious vaccine-preventable diseases are still prevalent in Somalia. Mercy-USA will thus support provision of routine EPI activities. This will continue to increase immunization coverage among women and children lt5 years. Nomadic groups and remote or difficult to access communities are most at risk of missing out on routine EPI. Therefore, Mercy-USA will facilitate outreach EPI teams.