Description: Prior to any appraisal, it is key to review information that is already available. This information may be available from the literature or secondary data sources, or can be obtained directly from key informants. The purpose of the exercise is dual. On the one hand, the aim is to carry out an in-depth analysis of available information in order to get a better understanding of the nutrition and household food security situation and the general livelihoods' context. The second purpose is to generate key questions for the field research in order to cover key information gaps and to allow verification of assumptions or hypotheses that emerged from the preliminary analysis. The preliminary situation analysis will be based on the information gathered at this stage and will be carried out jointly by the Appraisal Team members during an "Orientation and Planning Workshop". It is important to proceed through such a workshop given that a holistic analysis of nutrition and household food security requires that information from various sectors and levels be brought together.
Using secondary data analysis and literature review reduces the burden placed on the appraisal participants while allowing for the use of data from people or groups that are difficult to access and reducing the need for primary research and the cost of the appraisal. In general secondary data analysis and literature review make use of summarised data as opposed to primary research where raw data are the basis for analysis. It may therefore, if feasible at all, be useful to consult the original researchers to investigate the circumstances of the original data generation and processing. One should always be aware of the dangers involved in using secondary information sources, in particular the risk to repeat, unknowingly, the mistakes of other researchers and the elevation of preconceptions and assumptions to the level of facts and findings.
Information gathering at this stage involves making an inventory of available information by subject areas, categories and sources. Information may be available at different locations, and the level of aggregation and processing in general increases when one moves up from the actual location through the district to the national level. One should in particular be careful with making conclusions on a very particular situation, arguing from highly aggregated information given that aggregation may have masked a lot of the underlying variation.
It is useful to record the findings from secondary data analysis and literature review in a way that reflects the level of certainty or confidence with which the statement can be made, as well as the degree to which the findings can be generalised or not. Three categories can be used for that purpose, namely: (1) confirmed findings; (2) assumptions that need verification, and; (3) findings that may be valid under certain conditions and not in others. The last category is extremely important to differentiate findings by gender, agro-ecological zones, socio-economic groups, ethnicity and religion, etc.
A fourth category can usefully be added to record key questions that could not be answered from the secondary data analysis and need to be addressed through the field research.
In preparation of a comprehensive analysis of the nutrition and household food security situation and livelihood context, the findings can be further interpreted using the SWOT analysis tool. The SWOT analysis helps organising information in terms of constraints and opportunities affecting households' ability to achieve food security and good nutrition.
Objective: To develop a preliminary analysis of the nutrition and household food security situation in the study area and generate hypotheses regarding causality and effect, using existing secondary quantitative and qualitative data and information obtained from informants that do not necessarily live in the study area.
Participants:
Appraisal team, Key informants from Governmental and Non-Governmental Organisations, Participants in prior research work
How to facilitate:
1. Prepare an inventory of information needs, categories of information (articles, books, maps, statistics, reports, etc.) and information sources (Government Ministries, Provincial and District Administrations, Non-governmental Organisations, Universities and Research Centres, International Organisations, Statistics Offices, Rural Health Centres, Schools, Civil Society Organisations, etc.)
2. Assign sector specialists to prepare a Sector Review and Analysis Report. The report should provide an overview of basic indicators and analyse the relation between the sector and the nutrition and household food security situation over time. The report should make a distinction between confirmed findings, assumptions and hypotheses that need to be verified, provide information that is disaggregated by gender, socio-economic groupings, agro-ecological zones, and other criteria that allow for useful differentiation.
3. Sector specialists should prepare an inventory of crucial information gaps and suggest key questions that could be used in the design of the field appraisal.
4. Sector specialists should further analyse their findings in order to reach a better understanding of the role of their sector in people's ability to achieve good nutrition and household food security. The analysis should look both at positive and negative aspects and determine the impact of the finding on nutrition and household food security. The question should be asked if it has helped people (positive points) or hindered (constraints) them. In a more advanced form, the answers could be further analysed and one could determine whether the affected people have control over the identified constraints and opportunities. Constraints over which people have control can be termed weaknesses (e.g. social vices), those over which they have no control are threats (e.g. drought). Positive points over which people have control can be named strengths (strong civil society), those over which they do not have control are opportunities (donor funds).
Outputs:
A list of key questions for the appraisal
Resources needed:
Materials: maps, statistics, reports, reviews, and other sources of secondary information.
