United Purpose / Self Help Africa (Bangladesh)

United Purpose (UP) is an international NGO known for its innovative and sustainable approach to development, working towards a society where everybody can achieve their potential. In August 2021, UP merged with Self Help Africa (SHA) to strengthen the capacity and scale of both organisations, aligning strategies and values. They are delivering more than 100 projects in 17 countries, funded by a range of institutional donors, including the EU, Irish Aid and WFP, independent trusts and foundations, and through public donations.

They work in partnership with communities to deliver high quality projects, including improving agriculture and food systems, facilitating access to markets and financial services, and providing access to clean water, hygiene and sanitation.

In 2022/2023, the Eurofins Foundation provided funding to the LEAN project (Leadership to Ensure Adequate Nutrition).

UP launched the Leadership to Ensure Adequate Nutrition (LEAN) project in 2018 with core funding from the European Commission to address the disproportionately high levels of malnutrition in the Chittagong Hill Tracts in Bangladesh.

The support from the Eurofins Foundation has significantly helped United Purpose to reach the objectives of the LEAN programme through increasing their outreach capacity. The basic interventions are improving behavioural change on nutrition, increasing diversified food production and marketing and collaboration with government line departments. The overall goal of maternal nutrition improvement in Chittagong Hill Tracts is being reached.

Some impact highlights:

A total of 85 different government line agencies prioritised and allocated a nutrition budget in their Annual Action Plans. Before the LEAN project, the Government of Bangladesh had not accounted for the Chittagong Hill Tracts area in its national nutrition
70% of women consumed 5 or more food groups daily.
11,000 smallholder farmers adopted innovative and climate smart and agroecological production technolog

The LEAN project has contributed a lot to changes at decision-making level. Through the sensitisation of the Nutrition Coordination Committee at district and sub-district level on the Second National Plan of Action for Nutrition, the decision makers are now increasing their nutrition budget in their annual plan of action, which was not the case previous to the project.

The grant also supported:

Contribution to women empowerment (250 women entrepreneurs);
Improvement in the intake of iron and folic acid supplements by 3,000 adolescent girls;
Increase in the use of sanitary pads by adolescent girls;
Vegetable gardens established;
Nutrition fairs held in 45 schools in Khagrachari. In addition, debate competitions on nutrition were held in the school to build awareness among all students in the school.
Low cost and climate smart technologies were adopted by smallholder farmers to meet nutrition demand.

This project contributes to the following United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals

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