Enhancing coherence between trade policy and nutrition action. United Nations System Standing Committee on Nutrition, 10 June 2016, FAO © FAO: http://www.fao.org

1. Enhancing coherence between
trade policy and nutrition action
Corinna Hawkes
Professor of Food Policy
Director, Centre for Food Policy
Co-Chair, Global Nutrition Report
corinna.hawkes@city.ac.uk
Trade and Nutrition: Opportunities and Risks, UNSCN/CFS Event, FAO, June 10 2016

3. Definitions

4. Defining “trade policy”
• Rules and regulations governments put into place to
govern transactions across national borders
• Policy instruments designed to influence physical
movement of products across national borders,
provision of services, economic exchange
• “Behind-the-border” policies that affect trade and
incentives for private companies to trade and invest

5. Defining (mal)nutrition

6. • Actions that aim to achieve nutrition objectives…
1. People live in nutrition-promoting environments
2. People are less poor
3. Women are empowered
4. People have access to quality health & nutrition services
5. People know about positive nutrition behaviours
• ..in the pathway to improved nutritional status
Defining “nutrition action”

8. Example of nutrition action pathway
Actions to
create an
enabling
environment
for nutrition
action
Nutrition
Action
Objective
Change in
nutrition
behaviour
Nutrition
status
Governance
arrangements
that enable
coordination
between other
sectors and
nutrition
action
Procure
nutritious
foods into
public
institutions
that serve
people on low
incomes
People have
access to more
nutritious
foods (more
nutrition-
promoting
environment)
More people –
consume
nutritious
diets
Improved
nutrition
status

9. Defining “policy coherence”
• SDG 7, Target 17.14 “Enhance Policy Coherence for
Sustainable Development”
• OECD (2003): “Promotion of mutually reinforcing policy
actions across government departments and agencies
creating synergies towards achieving the agreed objectives”
• OECD (2014): “Policy coherence for sustainable
development” integrates economic, social, environmental,
governance dimensions of sustainable development
• Aims break down silos between policy communities and
applying integrated, whole of government approaches to
common global challenges e.g. nutrition

10. Actions to
create an
enabling
environment
Nutrition
Action
Objective
Change in
nutrition
behaviour
Nutrition
status
Governance
arrangements
that enable
coordination
Procure
nutritious
foods into
public
institutions
People have
access to
healthier food
More people
consume
adequate, safe,
nutritious,
diverse, healthy
diets
Improved
nutrition
status
Is there policy coherence between trade policy &
nutrition action?
Do governance
arrangements
permit
coherence?
Is there policy
space in trade
policy for the
action?
Are trade policy
objectives
aligned with
nutrition
objectives?
Do the outcomes
of trade policy
support or
undermine the
behaviour?

11. Opportunities &
risks
of trade
policy for
nutrition

12. Comparing objectives of nutrition
action & trade policy
(Some) trade objectives
• Improved & more stable
supply of products &
services
• Lower prices of consumer
goods
• Economic growth
• Higher incomes
• Greater employment
opportunities
Nutrition objectives
• People live in nutrition-
promoting environments
• People are less poor
• Women are empowered
• People have access to
quality health& nutrition
services
• People know about positive
nutrition behaviours

13. Trade policy
objectives
Pathways of
influence
Economic
growth
Higher
incomes
Improved & more stable
supply of products &
services
Lower prices of
consumer goods
Greater
employment
opportunities
Trade
policies
For example, lower tariffs, harmonization of standards, protecting intellectual property rights,
reducing barriers to the trade in services, development of infrastructure and capacity for trade
Environments
around people
are healthy
People are less
poor
Women are
empowered
People are
educated about
nutrition
People have
access to health
and nutrition
services
Nutrition
action
For example, develop capacity to deliver nutrition action, social protection, procure foods to
public institutions, restrict inappropriate promotional marketing, involve women in agricultural
interventions for nutrition, supplementation programmes, public awareness campaigns
Nutrition
objectives
Imports/exports Foreign investment Government revenuesProvision of services
PRODUCTS & PRICES
E.G. availability, price, diversity &
stability of food and products used in
nutrition services to prevent, treat &
manade malnutrition
EMPLOYMENT
E.G. amount and type of jobs;
wages; spill-over effects
NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE
E.G. transport; health;
education; research; social
protection; standards & sanitary
control systems

14. Pathways of
influence
Trade
policies
Nutrition
objectives
Lower tariffs
Examples
Environments
around people
contain
adequate food
throughout the
year
More stable supply of
foods at lower prices
during periods of lower
national production
✔
Imported grain displace
more nutritious
regionally or nationally
produced grain
Environments
around people
contain less
nutritious
staples
✗

16. FAO, State of Agricultural
Commodity Markets, 2015/16
Trade affects each of the
four dimensions of food
security…The interaction
of trade with these
dimensions is complex and
depends on a variety of
underlying factors,
producing great differences
in country experiences and
making it difficult to
ascertain a generalizable
relationship
The influence of trade
policy on nutrition is not
generalizable but context
specific, differing between
foods, forms of
malnutrition and
population groups, and
influenced by
accompanying trade
reforms and existing
policies and institutions

17. Role of complementary policies
Examples of potential complementary policy to enhance opportunity
• Programmes to enhance economic access to fruits & vegetables for low
income groups
• Investment in infrastructure for local markets for fruits & vegetables e.g.
through WTO Aid for Trade initiative facility or Enhanced Integrated
Framework (EIF) aid for trade partnership
• Policies which encourage household/ community horticulture
• Investment in agrobiodiversity in areas where markets poorly developed

18. Examples of potential complementary policies to mitigate risks
• Restrictions on advertising, publicity, marketing to children
• Clear nutrition labelling for full information
• Taxes on sugary drinks
• Public awareness campaigns
• Nutrition counselling for pregnant women & education
programmes

19. How to promote
coherence?

20. 1. Reframe the question
• From:
• Is trade bad or good for nutrition?
• To
• What are the nutrition challenges in my
region/country and how can trade policy
help attain nutrition objectives?

21. 2. Analyse coherence
• Is trade policy supportive of nutrition
objectives?

22. 3. Identify & implement
complementary policies
• What are the complementary policies that
can enhance opportunities of trade policy
for nutrition and mitigate risks?

23. 4. Strengthen institutional capacity
and & governance mechanisms
• What capacity do we need to enable
coherence & what governance mechanisms
can we use or build to implement it?

24. But first, countries must name
nutrition as a development priority

25. Thank you!
Corinna Hawkes
Professor of Food Policy, Director, Centre for Food Policy
corinna.hawkes@city.ac.uk
corinnahawkes