Mid-Term Review Report for Right2Grow Project in South Sudan-October 2023

Abstract
Background and purpose: Despite considerable progress since the year 2000, globally, malnutrition in under 5s remains an issue across much of the world. According to UNICEF, an estimated 45.4 million children under the age of 5 globally suffered from wasting in 2020 with an estimated 13.6 million children suffering from severe wasting. Right2Grow believes that in order to ensure that all children under five years of age are well nourished “changes in mindset and behavior are required at all levels – from household up to the state”. It focuses jointly on the areas of nutrition and WASH. Within South Sudan, the Right2Grow Consortium has eight members four of which are nonprofit international organizations while the other four nonprofit national organizations. The Mid-term review was aimed to assess country programme progress and gaps towards the achievement of the 5-year outcomes and targets (as set during the baseline phase) as per DSO and FNS Results Frameworks.
Methods: This Mid-Term Review (MTR) focuses on its accomplishments at the halfway stage in terms of implementation. It is the result of the analysis of a range of secondary sources (primarily project documents) through a thorough process of outcomes harvesting, combined with the analysis and triangulation of primary data collected in July and August 2023 in the form of Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs).
Findings: The Right2Grow Consortium’s Theory of Change for South Sudan is viewed by the respondents as a useful means of guiding activities towards intended outcomes to create change. The programme is having a significant positive impact across the four main outcome areas. Sharing expertise between partners, the conduction of exchange visits to share learnings and best practice, and stringent efforts by Save the Children to promote localization, including through technical support provided to national consortium and Right2Grow leads improved the collaborative efforts among the consortium members. Key challenges and lessons learned including the impact that bureaucratic challenges have had on the disbursement of funds between SCI and national Consortium and Right2Grow leads; lack of consultation for local partners on the Theory of Change design; logistical challenges which impact the implementation of some activities, in particular during the rainy season.