Road Map for Collaboration: Addressing Health & Nutrition Disparities Across Rwanda

This case details internal and external collaboration in the Community Health and Improved Nutrition (CHAIN) Project (2014-2019) implemented in Rwanda. CHAIN is a multi-sectoral nutrition project designed to address health and nutrition disparities that affect Rwandans. CHAIN developed a project management team (PMT) to facilitate collaboration across the Mission; this team included staff from both technical and support teams. Collaboration among implementing partners (IPs) and other stakeholders was incorporated into the responsibilities of the PMT; it is seen as an opportunity to increase reach, provide cost-savings, increase the quality or holistic nature of the package of services offered, and amplify advocacy power. Mission staff used trial and error to adaptively develop a PMT roadmap and explored different opportunities for encouraging collaboration within the Mission and across IPs. In 2018, the Mission conducted a mid-term, whole of project evaluation of CHAIN, which found positive results from CHAIN’s coordination and collaboration model. The PMT continues to support learning and to adapt the collaborative approach based on evaluation findings.