These theories of change were developed to help the HarvestPlus program deliver on its planned
outcomes and impacts. HarvestPlus expects to contribute to the reduction in micronutrient deficiency
among women and children in rural areas of developing countries through the breeding and dissemination
of staple crop varieties with increased levels of key micronutrients. After ten years of breeding, economic,
and nutrition research to develop and assess varieties and their potential impact on human nutritional
outcomes, HarvestPlus is entering a third five-year phase focused on delivering micronutrient-rich
varieties at scale in nine target countries. To support program design, implementation, and evaluation in
the “delivery” phase of the HarvestPlus program (2014–2018), theories of change were developed for
three crop-country combinations—maize in Zambia, beans in Rwanda, and cassava in Nigeria—to
describe how HarvestPlus expects to contribute to the outcome of reducing inadequate micronutrient
intake among women and children in different agricultural and socioeconomic contexts in which
HarvestPlus works. The evidence supporting the assumptions and risks for each link in the pathway is
summarized and assessed. The results show that for some parts of the impact pathway, outcomes and
causal links are well defined and supported by evidence. In other areas, the program logic needs to be
better articulated so that hypotheses can be formulated and evidence generated. Addressing these gaps
through research, adaptations in delivery activities, and monitoring can increase the likelihood of
achieving expected outcomes as well as improve the ability of HarvestPlus and other nutrition-sensitive
agricultural programs to learn from current activities to inform a broader scaling up.