This year, a key focus of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Nutrition for Development is on the critical Nutrition for Growth (N4G) Summit in Paris, a global pledging moment to drive greater action towards ending malnutrition.
Following the pre-N4G visit to Paris last month, the APPG’s Co-Chairs, David Mundell MP and Steve Race MP, returned to Paris to attend the N4G summit itself, joined by Dr Beccy Cooper MP, Chair of the APPG on Global Health and Security. Lord Oates, Chief Executive of United Against Malnutrition and Hunger (UAMH), which provides the Secretariat for the APPG, also joined the visit.
The delegation kick-started the three-day visit by attending a high-level reception to launch the Global Nutrition Integration Compact (Global Compact) on the eve of the summit, co-hosted by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the Government of Nigeria, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the World Bank, and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF). The Minister for International Development, Baroness Chapman, gave the keynote address, noting the importance of putting nutrition at the heart of development. You can read the Minister’s speech in full, here. The delegation also joined a key UK-led summit side event to launch the Global Compact, Nutrition at the heart of development – launching a nutrition integration compact, hosted by the FCDO in partnership with the Government of Nigeria, the World Bank, and IFAD. The event aimed to take forward the Compact and kick-start country implementation.
The next morning, the delegation attended the Official Opening of the Paris N4G, opened by the Prime Minister of France, François Bayrou, with H.M. Letsie III, King of Lesotho, Tiémoko Meyliet Koné, Vice President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, and Rosângela ‘Janja’ Lula da Silva, the First Lady of Brazil. The opening also included a video message from António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), and representations from Hadja Lahbib, European Commissioner for Crisis Preparedness and Management, and Axel van Trotsenburg, Managing Director of Development Policy and Partnerships at the World Bank, as well as young people from Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) civil society.
The delegation also attended three additional summit side events:
- a reception co-hosted by Stronger Foundations for Nutrition and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Network of Foundations Working for Development, Nourishing sustainable development through multisectoral philanthropic actions, which focused on bringing together philanthropies and political actors to feature innovative partnerships and financing models which are being deployed to finance nutrition;
- an African Union reception, Advancing Nutrition Financing and Accountability – a unified African approach, co-hosted by the African Union Commission, The Kingdom of Lesotho, The Republic of Cote D’Ivoire, The African Development Bank (AfDB), Nutrition International, and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) with an aim of reaffirming Africa’s collective commitment as outlined in the Africa Nutrition Communiqué 2025; and
- an event hosted by UNICEF and partners, Transforming Food Environments for Children, at which APPG Co-Chair, David Mundell MP, spoke. The event focused on how to adopt and enforce public policies to improve food environments for populations and, in particular, for children, fostering collaboration among stakeholders and showcasing best practices to promote and protect children’s rights to food and health.
The delegation finished the formal part of the visit by attending the closing of the summit, led by Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) and Thani Mohamed Soilihi, Minister Delegate for La Francophonie and International Partnerships.
Alongside the summit, the delegation the N4G ‘Village of Solutions’, an innovation and engagement space on the sidelines of the summit, bringing together key sector stakeholders to showcase concrete and innovative solutions for nutrition and sustainable food systems. The Village highlighted six key areas related to nutrition challenges and solutions:
- Nutrition, Health, and Social Protection
- Integrating nutrition into public health policies
- Nutrition and Gender Equality
- Promoting nutrition as a lever for gender equality
- Ensuring women and girls have access to adequate nutrition
- Nutrition, Climate, and Transition to Sustainable Food Systems
- Innovations in agriculture and agroecology
- Reducing food waste and promoting sustainable consumption models
- Nutrition and Crisis Resilience
- Strategies for preventing and responding to food crises
- Role of humanitarian actors and public policies
- Nutrition, Research, Data, Artificial Intelligence, and Innovation
- Leveraging new technologies to enhance nutrition policies
- AI and data analysis for better decision-making
- Nutrition, Financing, and Accountability
- Mobilising resources for effective actions
- Monitoring international commitments and ensuring financial transparency
Each theme was addressed through exhibition stands, conferences, and interactive spaces, immersing visitors in the most innovative sector initiatives.
Another core objective of the APPG is to build and maintain relationships with Parliamentarians in high-burden and other donor countries to help strengthen Parliamentary diplomacy and the collective case for global action. In the margins of the summit, the delegation was able to meet with members of the European Union (EU)’s Committee on Development – including Barry Andrews MEP from Ireland, Leire Pajín Iraola MEP from Spain, Murielle Laurent MEP from France, and Vlad Vasile-Voiculescu MEP from Romania – and Tanzanian Member of Parliament, Neema Lugangira, to discuss common challenges and solutions to build public and parliamentary support for nutrition.
A further objective of the APPG is to maintain and build relationships with key actors working on nutrition. In the margins of the summit, the delegation was able to meet with nutrition experts to hear about their work in communities, including Dr Mairo Mandara, a Nigerian obstetrician, gynaecologist, and public health physician, Dr Sufia Askari, Managing Director of Sight and Life, a global organisation dedicated to tackling malnutrition, and Dr Sherin Varkey, World Bank Program Leader for Human Development for Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Eritrea.
The delegation also met with SUN Civil Society Network (SUN CSN) youth advocates, Jane Napais Lankisa, a trained nutritionist from Kenya, Messeny Bafouro Camara, a rural engineer from the Republic of Guinea, and Finian Ali, an activist, NGO Professional and Development Research Fellow from Nigeria. Youth Leaders for Nutrition is a programme led SUN CSN to drive the creation of diverse, inclusive, national networks of children, young people, and youth-led groups and organisations, all working together to end malnutrition for all in their country. The delegation heard from the youth coordinators about why nutrition in their countries matters to them and the action they are taking in their communities.
The delegation also met with a group of World Vision International’s Young Leaders – Salome, 16 years’ old and from Colombia, Sunischita, 15 years’ old and from Nepal, and Williams, 17 years’ and from Sierra Leone. These individuals are all part of programmes across the world where World Vision works and receive training in advocacy and leadership. The delegation heard how they are working in their communities to improve nutrition and engage their peers in nutrition advocacy. Their collective Call to Action included a call to listen to and consider children’s and youth’s initiatives from homes, schools, and universities as essential contributions to addressing problems of malnutrition and hunger.
Finally, the delegation had the opportunity to meet with Kedar Mankad, Senior Program Officer for Global Policy and Advocacy at the Gates Foundation and Andy Rigsby, Deputy Director for Global Policy and Advocacy at the Gates Foundation, and Will Moore, Chief Executive Officer of US philanthropy, the Eleanor Crook Foundation (ECF), to discuss nutrition interventions including the Child Nutrition Fund (CNF) and multiple micronutrient supplementation (MMS).