More than $27 billion has been committed to address global malnutrition and improve nutrition outcomes, according to organizers of the 2021 Nutrition for Growth Summit held in Tokyo this week.
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The pledging event came as global hunger numbers — which had already been moving in the wrong direction — are skyrocketing due to the COVID-19 pandemic and exacerbated by climate change and conflict.
Compared with 2019, an estimated 118 million more people were experiencing hunger last year amid the pandemic, and one-third of all people in the world suffer from at least one form of malnutrition. Current projections indicate that by 2025, 1 in 2 people will be malnourished, while an estimated 40 million children will be obsese or overweight in the next 10 years.
“Now is the time for us to take action,” said Fumio Kishida, prime minister of host country Japan, in his remarks opening the summit Tuesday. “Japan will provide nutrition-related assistance to the world, which will amount to over 300 billion yen — equivalent to around $2.8 billion — over the next three years.”
N4G had originally been scheduled for December 2020 but was delayed by one year because of the pandemic. N4G events have typically been hosted by countries also holding the Olympic Games — such as the United Kingdom and Brazil — and France has committed to hosting the next gathering in Paris in 2024.
This year’s event took place in a virtual format that saw leaders submitting recorded statements to announce financial and policy commitments. It included panel discussions focused on five themes: nutrition and universal health coverage, sustainable and healthy food systems, combating malnutrition in fragile contexts, data-based accountability, and financing for nutrition.
A total of 156 entities submitted commitments, including 66 governments making 330 separate pledges. Forty-four civil society organizations from 26 countries made financial and programmatic commitments. United Nations agencies participated as well.
Samantha Power, administrator at the U.S. Agency for International Development, on Tuesday announced a U.S. pledge of up to $11 billion over three years, subject to congressional appropriation.
“Building on years of U.S. investment and support for nutrition programs — support that has helped more than 100 million children escape the devastating and lasting effects of poor nutrition — we have adapted our nutrition programs for the COVID era,” Power said in a recorded video statement. “By investing in nutrition programs, applying the evidence of what works, and adapting quickly, we can prevent child malnutrition, even in the time of COVID, and we can build a healthier world for everyone.”
Canada announced $195 million in financing for 11 projects, which will be implemented by Canadian and international partners. Because a portion of that funding was included in a $520 million pledge made last year during the launch of the “Nutrition For Growth Year of Action,” the amount of entirely new financing is unclear.
The United Kingdom, which hosted the first N4G in 2013, made no new commitments, frustrating advocates who have been issuing dire warnings about the real-world consequences of the country’s cuts to development funding.
“We need to start calling out those that aren’t stepping up,” said Dominic MacSorley, CEO at Dublin-based NGO Concern Worldwide, during a panel Wednesday. “The U.K. government’s decision to make no financial pledge that we’ve heard of so far to tackle malnutrition is very disappointing, to say the least.”
As rates of malnutrition rise, so too does the cost to eliminate it. Estimates now suggest that $10.8 billion is required annually to meet global nutrition targets.
“The gap [between needs and funding] will continue to grow because [official development assistance] … and domestic resources are constrained. It also means that we as a community need to fight to protect the ODA and domestic allocations, but at the same time we also need to explore other options,” said Meera Shekar, global nutrition lead at the World Bank, citing the pandemic’s impact on the amount of financing available for nutrition. She serves as a co-chair of the N4G thematic working group on financing.
“We need to appreciate that the economic gains to society from investing in nutrition can be huge — up to $5.7 trillion a year by 2030. And at the same time, the good news is there is an opportunity to mobilize greater investment,” Shekar said. “We simply need to think outside the box for that.”
She said the private sector will be integral to progress and must invest in healthier food systems, as well as in environmental, social, and governance approaches. Mitigating climate impacts and reformulating unhealthy foods will also be key, she said.
Rocco Renaldi, secretary-general at the International Food & Beverage Alliance, announced two commitments on behalf of his organization’s members. Those include “an enhanced global policy” on marketing to children, which will restrict what companies can advertise as of Jan. 1. The alliance has also committed to set targets for maximum salt content in products across 40 food categories, which will be met by 2025 and 2030 as companies change to lower-sodium formulations.
“I’m conscious of the unease among some, if not many, in the health and nutrition communities in engaging with the private sector. I don’t want to say that conflicts of interest do not exist; of course they do, and they need to be managed. Of course, public and private sector interest and public health and commercial objectives are not always aligned,” Renaldi said. “I think we need to and we can work to align interests for better nutrition outcomes.”
UK commits nothing at Nutrition for Growth Summit
Nutrition experts say they are "hugely disappointed" by the lack of a financial pledge from the U.K. government at a key fundraising event.
To track progress on N4G commitments, the “2021 Global Nutrition Report” has developed the world’s first independent global accountability framework for nutrition action. Renata Micha, chair of the report’s independent expert group and co-chair of the N4G thematic working group on accountability, called the event’s financial mobilization “unprecedented” but cautioned that announcements alone are not sufficient.
“Lack of accountability is one of the key reasons we’re not meeting any of the global nutrition targets. Stronger accountability is what will allow commitments to translate into action and then impact,” Micha said.
“Far more financing is possible and must come from traditional, innovative, and private sources to get global nutrition back on track,” she continued. “We also call for better [and] more data and continuous engagement towards greater accountability beyond the summit. We need to ensure that the attention drawn to nutrition accountability this year is not only preserved for years to come, but it's intensified and that we all work together to make this happen.”
About the author
Teresa Welshtmawelsh
Teresa Welsh is a Senior Reporter at Devex. She has reported from more than 10 countries and is currently based in Washington, D.C. Her coverage focuses on Latin America; U.S. foreign assistance policy; fragile states; food systems and nutrition; and refugees and migration. Prior to joining Devex, Teresa worked at McClatchy's Washington Bureau and covered foreign affairs for U.S. News and World Report. She was a reporter in Colombia, where she previously lived teaching English. Teresa earned bachelor of arts degrees in journalism and Latin American studies from the University of Wisconsin.
