By Emem Idio, Yenagoa

As a systematic approach to address malnutrition among households in Bayelsa State, as well as help them to understand how to take control of their finances, the International Fund for Agriculture IFAD assisted Livelihoods Improvement Family Enterprise in Niger Delta, LIFE-ND, has trained community members on nutrition and financial learning systems.

The training programe with the theme:”Training the Trainees Workshop on Integrating Gender Action Learning System in Nutrition, GALS, and Financial Action Learning System, FALS,” was held at the Imiringi Community Town Hall, by in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

The Gender Action Learning System (GALS) in nutrition is a participatory, community-led methodology that uses simple visual tools to help households to improve decision-making around food and income,

Declaring the training open, Dr Abiodun Sanni, LIFE-ND National Project Coordinator represented by Mrs Chioma Obasii, LIFE-ND National Nutrition Mainstreaming Specialist, explained that one of the objectives of the training is to use a food base approach to address malnutrition, as well as strengthen household collaboration to achieve better nutrition outcomes.

She said: “As a project, our goal is to improve the dietary quality of various households, so that they no longer eat starchy foods and diversify their diets by incorporating different crops in each meal.

“Its part of LIFE-ND intervention strategy to help households improve their diets, if the husband and wife can come together and analyze what they eat.

“Gender Action Learning System, GALS, is a participatory approach and communities led approach that helps you to know where you are and then have a vision of where you want to be in different aspects of life.

“So we are using GALS tools to help households improve their nutrition outcomes. How can they know where they are and what they eat, so that realization will help them to do the right thing, so that is why we are here today in Imiringi Community. We want collaborative approach in households.

“That is where nutrition sensitive Agriculture comes in so that we do agriculture in such a way that its addresses malnutrition, so that we don’t just produce crops but that we produce crops that will help to fight malnutrition ,.so that is what our project is doing.”

Speaking on Financial Action Learning System, FALS, part of the training, the LIFE-ND National Financial Inclusion Specialist, Empress Ekwelie, on her part, highlighted that
the essence of the training is to help the LIFE-ND incubatees to understand how to take control of their finances because as they need to understand that it is about their finances, businesses and their future.

“What we did today is Financial Action Learning System, FALS, the essence of this training is to help our incubatees to understand how to take control of their finances because they need to understand that it is about their money, their businesses and their future ..

“With FALS we are able to help them to be understand and able to track their income and expenses ,this will help to know if they are actually making profit or if they are just moving cash around, and to be able to save intentionally to help them build capital over time which can even help for expansion.

“Another thing that this training does is that it will also help them to access credit and use it wisely so that they do not fall into the traps of loan sharks with high interest rates. The training also helps the beneficiaries to understand that they should be using digital payment systems so that they can save money for charges, that is the whole essence of the training.

“And with an understanding of FALS they will be able to know their endings from the beginning by the time because there already know where they are going and you start from there, so its just for them to have a clear picture of everything they are doing and its helps them to make informed decisions.”