Alive & Thrive is a global nutrition initiative dedicated to improving the health and wellbeing of women, children, and adolescents. Since 2009, Alive & Thrive has worked to save lives, prevent illness, and ensure healthy outcomes for women and children. The initiative aims to improve nutritional status through interventions promoting breastfeeding, complementary feeding, and maternal nutrition. Vietnam, chosen due to its high rates of child malnutrition and low exclusive breastfeeding rates, has been a focus country since 2009. This study aims to review Alive & Thrive’s peer-reviewed papers, reports, and grey documents to report key challenges, health sector interventions, justifications, and lessons learned, serving as a case study for improving infant, and young child nutrition in lower-middle-income countries. Before the program, Vietnam faced significant challenges in infant and young child nutrition, including suboptimal breastfeeding and complementary feeding practices. Alive & Thrive employed several key approaches to address these challenges, including the development of mass media campaigns, standardization of counselling services, advocacy to enforce the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes and maternity protection recommendations, and strategic use of data. Additionally, Alive & Thrive focused on strengthening the health system by supporting hospital-based interventions on early essential newborn care, introducing the Center of Excellence on Breastfeeding model, and establishing the Vietnam Human Milk Bank service network. Data from the monitoring system and research has demonstrated that these interventions have significantly contributed to improved infant, and young child nutrition. The success of the Vietnam program has made it a model for other countries in the region, demonstrating the potential of evidence-based, scalable interventions to create lasting change. Alive & Thrive has significantly improved infant, and young child nutrition in Vietnam. Its comprehensive approach, combining advocacy, mass media, interpersonal communication, and strategic use of data, along with continuous adaptation, innovation, and improvement, has led to increased breastfeeding rates and reduced child malnutrition.
