On 18 May 2026, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Nutrition for Development hosted a parliamentary roundtable on the eve of the Global Partnerships Conference to emphasise importance of forging partnerships across sectors to tackle malnutrition.
The Global Partnerships Conference was hosted by the UK government, South Africa, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) and British International Investment (BII) and gathered over 1,200 delegates and 50 ministers looking to foster international development cooperation, drive green investment, and advance country-led economic growth. The summit set out the UK’s new approach to development, as the crisis in the Middle East continues to wreak havoc on global energy and food security. With the World Food Programme estimating that nearly 45 million more people could fall into acute food insecurity if the conflict does not end by the middle of the year, the conference serves as a critical moment to bring together governments, businesses, philanthropies, international organisations and civil society to discuss how wider coalitions working together can better respond to the urgent global challenges at play.
The roundtable event, Partnerships for Tackling Malnutrition: Leadership & Lessons from Africa, convened by United Against Malnutrition & Hunger (UAMH) and the APPG on Nutrition for Development and chaired by its Co-Chair, Rt Hon David Mundell MP, brought together representatives from diplomacy, civil society, and parliament to discuss how stronger collaboration can help tackle malnutrition.
In his opening remarks, Rt Hon David Mundell MP emphasised the scale and impact of malnutrition, highlighting how it suppresses productivity, constrains economic growth, and disproportionately harms women and children across Africa. Emphasising the scale of the challenge, he called for collective action across the private sector, philanthropy, NGOs, academia and policymaking to mobilise funding, expertise and political will.
Speakers included South African High Commissioner to the UK, His Excellency Jeremiah Nyamane Mamabolo; Zambian High Commissioner to the UK, Her Excellency Macenje Mazoka; Deji Adebusoye, Partner at Sahel Capital; and UAMH Expert Advisers Neema Lugangira and Finian Ali. Together, they made the case for putting nutrition at the centre of a modern international development approach, and were unanimous in agreement that given globally declining levels development assistance, disproportionate cuts to nutrition funding in recent years and stalled progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the need for modern partnerships to rapidly alleviate global malnutrition and hunger was more needed than ever.
The event was attended by APPG members including Co-Chair Rt Hon David Mundell MP, Alan Gemmell MP, and Baroness Hodgson of Abinger, as well as several colleagues from civil society.