Integrated Social Support Fund, pilot on MNCH Activities 2013 - 2014

The social support project is a Social Fund implemented as a pilot in selected PRRINN MNCH community engagement sites (48 in total across four states). The Social Fund channeled through the CVs is used to support activities that directly address barriers of access, affordability, availability and acceptability of MNCH services or that support home based-care of pregnant and newly delivered mothers and newborn.

Improved community ownership of the community engagement activities as well as the Young Women’s Support Groups (YWSG) initiative;
Assisting Community Volunteers (CVs) to strengthen existing and implement additional initiatives to improve access to MNCH services;
Enhanced motivation of CVs and sense of empowerment derived from being trusted with programme funds;
Promoting economic empowerment of the young women in the YWSG, and contributing to improved social, human, physical and financial assets of young women in the intervention communities;
Creating a space to involve the least-supported young women in the intervention communities in economic activities and generally help improve the inclusion of these women in communal activities.
In how many communities will the Social Fund be piloted?
The SF will be piloted in 11 communities in the four PRRINN MNCH project states – Katsina, Zamfara, Jigawa, and Yobe states. The communities will be selected from Clusters 1-3 in each project state. A total of five LGAs will participate in the study.
Intervention sites will be drawn from clusters 1, 2 and 3. A total of 11 community volunteer groups will be supported; and 56 YWSG in 11 communities (see Table 2). In each LGA an additional community will be selected as a control. These control communities will be provided SF after the pilot phase.