Following five months of intensive preparation, COWASH IV and the Max Foundation have officially launched the first phase of a new initiative designed to integrate Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) with Nutrition and Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture (NSA). The joint team commenced the Woreda-level implementation by conducting a comprehensive capacity-building training in the Central Ethiopia Region for 50 government experts, health extension workers, and local enterprises.

The curriculum focused on three critical pillars designed to ensure the programme’s long-term success. The first pillar addressed maternal and child nutrition, with the Max Foundation leading sessions on adolescent health and infant growth monitoring for health and nutrition experts. This was followed by a focus on nutrition-sensitive agriculture, a collaborative effort with the Seqota Declaration team to train regional experts on how to integrate nutritional goals directly into local farming practices. To ensure the private sector can support these objectives, the final pillar, led by COWASH IV team, provided business skill development for sanitation enterprises, covering financial planning, cost structures, and market segmentation.

The rollout follows a successful action plan validation mission to Fofa Woreda, the initiative’s selected pilot site. During this mission, the joint team inspected health centers to verify that tools for growth monitoring were in place and confirmed critical integration points with local health, agriculture and energy offices. By aligning the action plan with the Woreda’s specific priorities and existing systems, the project aims to ensure that the integration of WASH and nutrition is both sustainable and locally led.

This multi-sectoral initiative marks a strategic shift in how rural development programmes address the intersection of health and agriculture. By empowering local experts to cascade this knowledge to their communities, the programme aims to move beyond traditional infrastructure, embedding health and economic sustainability directly into community-managed WASH services. The initiative is set to enter its next phase in the coming months, as health extension workers and Woreda experts begin cascading the training directly to community members.