What changed and is it working? Capacity and governance changes of the Barangay Integrated Development Approach for Nutrition Improvement program in Laguna, Philippines

This paper examines the stakeholder-based insights on the most significant changes in local capacities and nutrition governance in the Province of Laguna resulting from the community-based Barangay Integrated Development Approach for Nutrition Improvement (BIDANI) implementation. Using the Most Significant Change technique, it monitored these social changes that have not yet been captured in the last two decades in the municipalities of Calauan, Nagcarlan, and Rizal. These changes were gathered through workshops with 113 barangay participants, followed by 22 key informant interviews from municipal governments. Results revealed that the major changes perceived by barangay participants include the improvement of technical capacities that enabled establishment and management of Barangay Management Information System, improvement of knowledge and skills in participatory planning process, and prioritization of nutrition improvement in local development. These are aligned with the resource-based changes identified by municipal informants. Combining these perceptions, the MSCs brought by BIDANI in the municipalities include the establishment of barangay databases that are accessible for various uses, development of Barangay Integrated Development Plans (BIDPs) that increased linkages and budget, and improved community practices with better understanding of nutrition. This change-based information can inform BIDANI and the partner municipalities in revitalizing its strategies, particularly in its Participatory Nutrition Enhancement Approach by improving its key components like community mobilization, life-cycle nutrition support, and collaboration across multiple sectors.