National Consultant for Nutrition Review – Management of Child Wasting and Nutrition in Emergency Programmes in Indonesia, Indonesia, 5 months (home-based with travel), for Indonesia Only

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Background:

Indonesia is classified as an upper-middle-income nation because of its significant socioeconomic progress. Nevertheless, the nation continues to struggle with the three faces of malnutrition, which affect millions of children, including undernutrition (wasting and stunting), obesity and overweight, and micronutrient deficiencies. The latest national survey conducted in 2023 revealed that 21.5% of children under five were stunted, or around 4.7 million children; 8.5% or around 2 million children in the same age range were wasted; and 4.2% of children were overweight or obese. Furthermore, 25% of pregnant women experience anemia, and 23% of children under five are anemic. Furthermore, situated in the Ring of Fire, Indonesia is highly vulnerable to natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis. These disasters, coupled with the impacts of climate change—including rising sea levels, increased frequency of extreme weather events, and shifting agricultural patterns—exacerbate malnutrition risks. They disrupt food systems, healthcare services, and social support structures, making it even more challenging to ensure adequate nutrition and health for children and pregnant women.

The government has introduced various policies and programmes to address malnutrition. Law No. 36/2009 on Health established a framework for improving public nutrition while joining the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement in 2011 reinforced this commitment. Law No. 18/2012 mandated the development of five-year Food and Nutrition Action Plans (RANPG). In 2013, the GERMAS PPG initiative under Presidential Regulation No. 42/2013 accelerated nutrition improvements, further strengthened in 2021 by the National Strategy to Accelerate Stunting Reduction (STRANAS Stunting), aiming to lower stunting to 14% by 2024. This multisectoral approach integrates nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions, including wasting prevention and treatment, school nutrition programs, anemia prevention, and obesity management. Efforts by the MoH and other agencies have led to notable progress: from 2013 to 2023, stunting dropped from 37.6% to 21.5%, wasting from 12.1% to 8.5%, and overweight/obesity from 11.9% to 4.2%.

To sustain these achievements, nutrition indicators are embedded in the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) 2025–2029 and the Long-Term Development Plan (RPJPN) 2025–2045. The new President has pledged to prioritize nutrition through nationwide school meals and food supplementation for children under five and pregnant women. With 2024 marking the final year of STRANAS Stunting, the MoH will review its nutrition programs to assess progress, evaluate interventions, and identify areas for sustainable improvements.

Scope of Work:

The National Consultant will work as part of a team of experts, under the overall coordination of the International Team Lead, and in close coordination with UNICEF, supporting the review of Care for wasted children/Integrated Management of Acute Malnutrition (IMAM) and Nutrition in Emergency (NiE) programme. The National Consultant, will be requested to deliver the following:

1. In coordination with the International Team Lead and national team lead hired, to conduct the review, contribute to the development of a data collection and analysis methodology, to be presented to a task team during an inception meeting for validation before fieldwork.
2. Work closely with the other consultants including those responsible for early childhood malnutrition and programme costing, carry out an in-depth literature review of child wasting-IMAM and NiE programmes considering critical programmatic issues:

• Good governance and leadership (policy, national guidelines, technical leadership and regulation and coordination).
• Financing (regular budget allocation, annual costed action plans, and financial protection)
• Service Delivery (accessibility and availability of services, early detection of various platforms and community mobilization, and emergency surge capacity);
• Health Workforce capacity to provide quality services (competencies, education/skills development, professional development, performance management and motivation system, adequate coverage, and geographic distribution).
• Essential Supplies and equ