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Engaging Men for improved Family Planning and Nutrition outcomes
- Vidhi
- India
- February 1, 2026
Situation
In two blocks of Samastipur district in India, low-income communities faced poor maternal and child diet diversity alongside high unmet need for contraception. Limited male involvement in nutrition and reproductive health decision-making reinforced these challenges.
Assignment
PCI India partnered with Dalberg to design and test interventions that could strengthen child diet diversity and increase contraceptive uptake by intentionally engaging men as supporters of family nutrition and sexual and reproductive health.
Approach
A rapid prototyping process generated, refined and tested concepts with families and community influencers. Two design interventions were selected and implemented for over a year across the two blocks. Continuous iteration during implementation improved relevance and community engagement. Baseline and endline surveys then assessed behavioural shifts and outcome changes.
Result
Child diet diversity increased as more families introduced a broader range of food groups for children under two. Spousal communication improved significantly, driving higher contraceptive uptake and more shared financial and health-related decision-making. Greater male participation in nutrition choices contributed to stronger family health outcomes and more equitable household dynamics.