Impact assessment of Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP) on maternal, child health and nutritional status in Pakistan: a quasi-experimental study protocol
Introduction Maternal and child malnutrition is a significant public health concern in Pakistan, with 40% of children under five being stunted. In response, the Government of Pakistan initiated the Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP), a nutritional supplementation programme for pregnant women, mothers...
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BMJ Publishing Group
2025-06-01
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| author | Simon Cousens Sajid Soofi Zulfiqar Ahmed Bhutta Imran Ahmed Arjumand Rizvi Shah Muhammad Atif Habib Muhammad Umer Jef Leroy Asma Abdul Malik |
| author_facet | Simon Cousens Sajid Soofi Zulfiqar Ahmed Bhutta Imran Ahmed Arjumand Rizvi Shah Muhammad Atif Habib Muhammad Umer Jef Leroy Asma Abdul Malik |
| author_sort | Simon Cousens |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction Maternal and child malnutrition is a significant public health concern in Pakistan, with 40% of children under five being stunted. In response, the Government of Pakistan initiated the Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP), a nutritional supplementation programme for pregnant women, mothers of children aged 0 to 23 months and children aged 6 to 24 months. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the BNP in reducing childhood stunting and improving maternal and child health outcomes.Methods and analysis A quasi-experimental longitudinal study comprising baseline, midline and endline surveys will be conducted across 18 districts (9 intervention and 9 control) in Pakistan. The surveys will use a two-stage cluster sampling method to enrol 13 200 children aged 0–59 months and their mothers from the Benazir Income Support Programme households. The primary outcome of interest is the prevalence of under-five stunting. We will use a difference-in-differences approach to estimate the impact by comparing the documented changes over time between the intervention and control groups.Ethics and dissemination This study will provide critical insights into the effectiveness of the BNP in addressing childhood undernutrition in Pakistan. The findings will inform policy and programmatic decisions aimed at reducing undernutrition in resource-constrained settings. Ethical approval has been obtained from the Ethics Review Committee of Aga Khan University and the Pakistan National Bioethics Committee.Trial registration number NCT06025786. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0381e04fdad24f6ebf56af73e98412c8 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2044-6055 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | BMJ Publishing Group |
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| series | BMJ Open |
| spelling | doaj-art-0381e04fdad24f6ebf56af73e98412c82025-08-20T02:35:19ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552025-06-0115610.1136/bmjopen-2024-094565Impact assessment of Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP) on maternal, child health and nutritional status in Pakistan: a quasi-experimental study protocolSimon Cousens0Sajid Soofi1Zulfiqar Ahmed Bhutta2Imran Ahmed3Arjumand Rizvi4Shah Muhammad5Atif Habib6Muhammad Umer7Jef Leroy8Asma Abdul Malik9Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UKPediatrics and Child Health, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, PakistanSickKids Centre for Global Child Health (C-GCH), Toronto, Ontario, CanadaCoE in Women and Child Health, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, PakistanPediatrics and Child Health, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, PakistanCoE in Women and Child Health, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, PakistanPediatrics and Child Health, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, PakistanCoE in Women and Child Health, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, PakistanInternational Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, UKCoE in Women and Child Health, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, PakistanIntroduction Maternal and child malnutrition is a significant public health concern in Pakistan, with 40% of children under five being stunted. In response, the Government of Pakistan initiated the Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP), a nutritional supplementation programme for pregnant women, mothers of children aged 0 to 23 months and children aged 6 to 24 months. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the BNP in reducing childhood stunting and improving maternal and child health outcomes.Methods and analysis A quasi-experimental longitudinal study comprising baseline, midline and endline surveys will be conducted across 18 districts (9 intervention and 9 control) in Pakistan. The surveys will use a two-stage cluster sampling method to enrol 13 200 children aged 0–59 months and their mothers from the Benazir Income Support Programme households. The primary outcome of interest is the prevalence of under-five stunting. We will use a difference-in-differences approach to estimate the impact by comparing the documented changes over time between the intervention and control groups.Ethics and dissemination This study will provide critical insights into the effectiveness of the BNP in addressing childhood undernutrition in Pakistan. The findings will inform policy and programmatic decisions aimed at reducing undernutrition in resource-constrained settings. Ethical approval has been obtained from the Ethics Review Committee of Aga Khan University and the Pakistan National Bioethics Committee.Trial registration number NCT06025786.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/6/e094565.full |
| spellingShingle | Simon Cousens Sajid Soofi Zulfiqar Ahmed Bhutta Imran Ahmed Arjumand Rizvi Shah Muhammad Atif Habib Muhammad Umer Jef Leroy Asma Abdul Malik Impact assessment of Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP) on maternal, child health and nutritional status in Pakistan: a quasi-experimental study protocol BMJ Open |
| title | Impact assessment of Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP) on maternal, child health and nutritional status in Pakistan: a quasi-experimental study protocol |
| title_full | Impact assessment of Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP) on maternal, child health and nutritional status in Pakistan: a quasi-experimental study protocol |
| title_fullStr | Impact assessment of Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP) on maternal, child health and nutritional status in Pakistan: a quasi-experimental study protocol |
| title_full_unstemmed | Impact assessment of Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP) on maternal, child health and nutritional status in Pakistan: a quasi-experimental study protocol |
| title_short | Impact assessment of Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP) on maternal, child health and nutritional status in Pakistan: a quasi-experimental study protocol |
| title_sort | impact assessment of benazir nashonuma programme bnp on maternal child health and nutritional status in pakistan a quasi experimental study protocol |
| url | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/6/e094565.full |
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