Prioritizing Nutrition in Agriculture and Rural Development

The purpose of this paper is to provide a set of guiding principles for incorporating

nutrition goals into the design and implementation of agricultural and rural development

projects, and to provide examples of current best-evidence options for operational

investments.

These principles and actions align with two general frameworks. The first is a World

Bank framework that lays out five main pathways from agriculture to nutrition: three at

the household level, including income generation, household consumption of food

produced on-farm, and women’s empowerment; and two at the macroeconomic level,

including economic growth and reduced food prices (World Bank 2007). Nutrition

education is also identified as an important factor modifying the effect of household-level

determinants. The best evidence currently suggests a strong role for the household-level

pathways, which is reflected in the principles highlighted in this document.