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A rapid food security assessment was carried out in Eastern Shewa and Western Hararghe to determine what CARE food-assisted projects have been undertaken, and what impact they have had on the participants. To determine whether the projects were properly designed, a rapid assessment of the household food security situation in each project area was carried out. Peasant Associations were selected on the basis of accessibility, main economic activity, distance from main roads, and history of food assistance. Two villages in which CARE assistance was not provided were surveyed in order to compare project areas with nonproject areas. Information sources included a document review, semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. Other interviews were conducted with government agencies, and collaborating institutions such as United Nations organizations and other NGOs.

SCF(UK) established a local food security monitoring project called SADS in the Mopti region of Mali, which has been operational since 1987. It aimed to identify who was vulnerable, where, when and why, and to provide appropriate information to decision makers. This working paper describes some of the lessons learnt from the experience of monitoring food security and coping strategies. Information was collected by field staff from rural people, and this paper examines the use of such qualitative and semi-quantitative data, and the problems associated with using local knowledge systems. The approach to data collection belongs loosely to that associated with RRA. Information was collected by project staff using checklists and semi-structured interviews with key informants, listening to oral histories and discussions at village meetings. SADS also uses sentinel sites called 'listening posts' which are located in positions to gain insight into larger areas. Information was collected on agricultural and fish production, on-farm stocks, off-farm employment, consumption and migration. This was supplemented by secondary data, particularly on rainfall. Seasonal calendars were drawn up to show food access, activities and coping strategies for different producer groups, and this has led to the use of seasonally specific monitoring indicators. SADS shows that a relatively low cost methodology for monitoring food security can be established, based mainly on socio-economic data, that can provide timely and reliable warnings of localised food insecurity.

This is a follow-up report on the work done by ActionAid to develop Community Based Food Security Monitoring Systems (CBMS) to assist in the timely predictions of impending food shortages. It is envisaged that CBMS's will not only prevent famine but also help build up livelihoods and strengthen long term development processes. This report looks at attempts in Malawi and Kenya to understand more about ways to use the community in the management of their own relief. Field staff were asked to speak to the community and come up with a list of alternative indicators that were particularly meaningful to them. An attempt was made to see if the the unique and detailed ways communities have of understanding and expressing situations of food insecurity could also have predictive value.

This paper addresses the issue of using rapid socio- anthropological techniques to understand coping strategies, based on work conducted by SCF(UK) during 1992 in Darfur, Sudan. It begins with a general background to Darfur and definitions of the terms used, and then looks specifically at the Coping Strategies Research Project (CSRP) in Darfur. SCF(UK) hoped that this project would identify the range of coping strategies used, in order to improve their relief operation planning as well as longer term development projects. A number of rapid data collection techniques are used, including semi-structured interviews, use of key informants and group discussions. Data from these were used to construct historical profiles, seasonal calendars, daily routine diagrams, and preference and wealth ranking. Finally problems, constraints, weaknesses and strengths are put forward, with lessons learnt and suggestions for improvement.

Two RRAs were carried out by interdisciplinary teams over a period of five weeks in two areas of Benin where malnutrition was considered a problem "this mixture proved effective, permitting not only a comprehensive analysis of the problem, but also comprehensive remedial action". Chapter 1 describes RRA techniques in nutrition and health, Chapter 2 is focused on the methodology employed, Chapter 3 discusses the findings, Chapter 4 compares the RRA results with those obtained from three quantitative studies. In Chapter 5, the methodology used in the two RRAs is reassessed and recommendations are made to researchers and development workers who want to follow a similar approach.

A brief description paper of PIM and PIM partners. PIM relies on process inherent in grassroots organisations and the focus is on monitoring rather than planning or evaluation. PIM is being developed in various grassroots organisations around the world and the results are being collaborated by FAKT/GATE. A small PIM guide is to be produced shortly. PIM addresses the fact that self help organisations suffer when there is an over-emphasis on technical goals and a neglect of the social component, particularly the dynamics of group building. Constant observation of the impact of a group's work, particularly socio-cultural, followed by reflection, allows the activities to be adapted as required and the group members to enhance their social and analytical skills. The different expectations of sub-groups are recognised.

A Kenyan Ministry of Agriculture team used PRA to assess the impact of its Catchment Approach in six catchments, focusing on community level changes. This impact analysis linked differences in the implementation process with differences in results. It was clear that increased levels of community mobilization and involvement led to greater, quicker and replicating changes. One page summaries for each catchment include: process of implementation; changes in productivity; changes in resource degradation; changes in local resilience and vulnerability; changes in self-dependence of local groups; replication; and operational procedures. Two further impact studies are planned; the full report should be finished in November 1994.