App updated for monitoring governance in food and nutrition security in Guatemala

• This App assists SESAN in assessing performance and quality of management in municipalities

July 17, 2023. The web application for monitoring governance in food and nutrition security (G-SAN) was created at the request of Guatemala's Secretariat of Food and Nutritional Security (SESAN), within the framework of the National Nutrition Information Platform Project (PiNN), implemented by CATIE (Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center). The purpose is to systematize the self-evaluation of governance by the Municipal Food and Nutritional Security Commissions (COMUSAN).

According to Marco Antonio Monzón, coordinator of food availability at SESAN, monitoring governance in food and nutritional security aims to self-assess the performance of COMUSAN and the quality of its management, as well as understanding the potentialities and areas for improvement of such a commission at a given time. This defines a governance index in SAN (Food and Nutritional Security) that allows for consensual and timely decision-making by COMUSAN. This tool is an application that, through algorithms, combines data from 31 variables and seven indicators to define a governance index in SAN. The governance index is classified into three levels: weak SAN governance: between 0 and 49.99%, acceptable SAN governance: between 50 and 79.99%, and fully acceptable SAN governance: between 80 and 100%.

According to Eduardo Say, coordinator of the PiNN project, the web application allows visualization, filtering, validation, and download of the records entered through the digital form, and the results are presented through statistical dashboards for analysis. The web application is for internal use by SESAN, so a dashboard with data was created for public information. "It is important to note that the App is implemented through a methodology unique to SESAN," commented Say.

Martha María Pacay, policy and advocacy expert of the PiNN project, stated that within SESAN's mandate is the implementation of governance monitoring in SAN, and this tool assists the institution in complying with what is established in the legal framework, such as the Regulation of the SINASAN Law, the Strategic Plan for Food and Nutritional Security (PESAN), and the Strategy and Manual of Governance in Food and Nutritional Security.

According to Bersau Sofoifa, multi-sector data manager of the PiNN project, changes made to the G-SAN web application have aimed to improve the quality of information and provide detailed data, graphs, and relevant indicators.

For Sofoifa, the involvement and accompaniment of the Department of Institutional Strengthening and Information Systems Coordination of SESAN was important since it included sections such as data, departmental and municipal rankings, and a map of the monitoring carried out.

Governance is important because it is a space for articulation of actors from government, civil society, business, academia, cooperation, with the aim of deciding, managing, implementing, and evaluating policies that address food and nutritional security.