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training team formed by a nucleus of national doctors and an expatriate public health specialist has been established under the responsibility of the MSASF's Cenne de formation pour le dćveloppement sanitaire (CFDS), under the aegis of the National School of Public Health (ENSP).

2.47    The 1992 Food Security and Nutrition Project (Credit 2414-BUR) aims, among other things, at improving food security programs to target Iow income groups in drought-prone provinces and also at improving efficient use of available household food to achieve better nutritional status for children below the age of three and nursing motbers. Emphasis is being placed on basie nutrients such as energy rich Staples, improved weaning practices and nutrition education. That project, however, does not specifically address problems of micronutrient deficiencies.

2.48    The FHP has also provided initial support for Burkina's effort to strengthen national capacity to control three endetnic parasitlc diseases ("devolution"). Activities under the Devolution Plan (totaling US$900,000) have been supported through the ongoing FHP sińce early 1992. The FHP bas supported the creation of four mobile teams, to conduct epidemiological surveillance-one central team in Ouagadougou, and three local teams in Bobo-Dioulasso, Banfora, Koudougou. The operations are being overseen bv the National Devolution Coordinator with the technical advice of OCP.

2.49    Parallel to preparation of the proposed project, the Govemment of Burkina Faso and the Bank have prepared a "Population and AIDS Prevention Project" whose objectives are: (a) to support the implementation of the Govemment's Population Policy; and (b) to strengthen the national capacity to contain the spread of HIV/AIDS/STDs. The support of the implementation of the Govemment's population policy will be achieved by: 0) improving the quality of, and access to, family planning (FP) and maternal and child health (MCH) services; (ii) inereasing public knowledge of, and demand for, modern contraception methods; (iii) strengthening the institutions in charge of implementing the national population policy and of planning, managing and evaluating FP programs; and (iv) establishing a fund to provide grant financing for projects in the area of population, FP, women in development (WID) and HIV/AIDS/STDs prevention. Strengthening the national capacity to contain the spread of HTWAIDS/STDs will be achieved by: (i) raising public awareness of HIV/AIDS and STDs to promote safer health practices and behavioral changes; (ii) promoting social marketing of condoms; (iii) strengthening capabilities for HIV/AIDS and STD prevention and control; and (iv) strengthening clinical management and community care. These two projects are mutually reinforcing because the Population and AIDS project will be implemented through the new health service structures established by the PDSN. Moreover, the success of the implementation of the Population and AIDS prevention project is essential to the sustainability of PDSN because: 0) without AIDS prevention, the health services will be overburdened and health expenses will be shilted to AIDS patients at the expense of other public heath interventions; and (ii) a continuing rapid population growth will seriously undermine efforts to bring about improvements in maternal and child health.