Presented in Bangkok by Francesco BRANCA

1. The UN Global Nutrition
Agenda (UNGNA v. 1.0)
Francesco Branca
UNSCN Executive Secretary a.i., WHO Director of Nutrition
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2. The dysfunctional architecture
• The Lancet Nutrition Series (paper 5, 2008)
The international nutrition system – made up of international donor
organizations, academia, civil society, and the private sector – is fragmented
and dysfunctional… The UN Standing Committee on Nutrition needs to become
a forum that makes individual UN agencies accountable for results.
• The SUN Stewardship Study (2011)
Leadership in international nutrition requires strong, credible leadership
coming from the UN System. Experience to date suggests that such UN
leadership is most effective when provided on a UN-wide basis rather than
from an individual UN organization or committee.
• The Lancet Nutrition Series (paper 4, 2013)
Despite SUN's substantial convening power, some external and country-level
confusion exists about the role of the SUN movement, the UN Standing
Committee on Nutrition, and the UN REACH programme.
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3. Rome Declaration on Nutrition
§14 - The United Nations system,
including the Committee on World Food
Security, and international and regional
financial institutions should work more
effectively together in order to support
national and regional efforts, as
appropriate, and enhance international
cooperation and development
assistance to accelerate progress in
addressing malnutrition;
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4. The SUN Independent
Comprehensive Evaluation
(2015)
There is wide agreement that the UN system, with its long-
standing presence in countries, has a critical role in
capacity building, and increasing national capacity and
expertise on nutrition, including multi-sectoral
coordination capacity… Even within the revitalised SUN
framework, mobilising prompt, effective and coordinated
action by the UN agencies remains a significant
challenge.
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5. The UNGNA is a guiding framework
for UN action in response to global
and country nutrition goals
• clarifies the role of the UN System, in
response to the changing global
nutrition policy landscape, given policy
commitments, agency mandates,
country expectations and needs
• provides guidance to UN teams a vision
of the UN’s shared agenda for nutrition
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6. Process of UNGNA development
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August
2013:
UNSCN/
UN
Networ
k for
SUN
Nairobi
meeting
April 2014:
face-to-
face
meeting
May
2014: UN
Network
for SUN
workplan
2014-
2015
approved
Aug-Nov
2014: desk
study,
electronic
consultations,
interviews
November
2014: face-
to-face
meeting
February
2015:
face-to-
face
meeting
June
2015: final
version
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7. e-consultation findings (1)
• 75% of individuals spend 40% or less of time on collaborative
activities
• many examples of collaboration, particularly in REACH
supported countries.
• collaboration is strongest on policy dialogue and support for
policy development, and weaker on situation analysis,
programme implementation, capacity building, knowledge
sharing, and M&E
• most respondents feel it is essential, or important, to
collaborate on all of these activities.
• collaboration is lowest on overweight/obesity and NCDs
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8. e-consultation findings (2)
• 60% indicated they have a mechanism to share information
about their programmes with other UN agencies, and/or they
have taken steps to align programmes to avoid duplication or
overlap
• less than 40 % indicated that they carry out joint programming
• 54% indicated that their agencies have policies and procedures in
place to allocate staff time and money to collaborative activities
• 54% said that their involvement in collaborative activities was
discussed in their last performance appraisal
• 44% said that collaboration was adequately rewarded in their
agencies
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9. The vision
The UN’s interagency work seeks to
catalyse action to achieve optimal nutrition
worldwide. Through our normative and
operational activities at global, regional
and country levels, we act collectively to
support countries in their advocacy,
governance and implementation efforts to
prevent and rapidly reduce all forms of
malnutrition 9
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10. Ten guiding principles
1. Nutrition is a pervasive development issue requiring action across the
globe
2. Multiple forms of malnutrition are interrelated and co-occur in a large
number of countries
3. Nutrition is a multisectoral issue
4. Food system change is fundamental to addressing nutrition challenges
5. Health system strengthening is essential to achieve nutrition goals
6. Good nutrition also requires, and is necessary for, functioning education
systems, social protection, and efforts to eradicate poverty and reduce
inequality
7. The UN is steered by a Human Rights-Based approach to nutrition
8. UN nutrition activities are informed by a commitment to gender rights
9. The UN acts in support of country priorities. local adaptation of strategies
is needed, according to varying country nutrition situations.
10. The UN system is one role player among several, playing unique
convening, networking, brokering, and technical support roles 10
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11. Three strategic outcomes
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Nutrition is embedded
in policies and
governance systems at
all levels
Nutrition is embedded
in policies and
governance systems at
all levels
Adequate support
systems are in place -
evidence, data, human
and financial resources
Adequate support
systems are in place -
evidence, data, human
and financial resources
Quality programmes
(nutrition-specific and
nutrition-sensitive) are
implemented at scale
Quality programmes
(nutrition-specific and
nutrition-sensitive) are
implemented at scale
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12. Fourteen specific goals
• Goal 1.1 : UN nutrition agenda in 75% SUN countries by 2016
• Goal 1.2 : budgeting, financing and expenditure tracking in SUN
countries supported by UN
• Goal 1.3 : coordinated advocacy programme
• Goal 1.4 : adequate staffing and budget in 6 UN organizations
• Goal 1.5 : UN network involves all UN organization in countries
• Goal 1.6 : global governance system for nutrition in 2017
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• Goal 2.1 : timely and high-quality support to countries
• Goal 2.2 : increased coverage and quality of iterventions
• Goal 2.3 : malnutrition levels declining
• Goal 3.1 : support to information systems
• Goal 3.2 : innovative financing
• Goal 3.3 : human capacity scale up
• Goal 3.4 : knowledge platforms aligned
• Goal 3.5 : research agendas developed

13. Accountability
• UN System organizations,
through the agency
nutrition leads will be
responsible for translating
the UNGNA vision,
principles and goals into
their workplans
• agencies seek increased
alignment to the priorities
agreed in the UNGNA
• reviews and updates of
UNGNA every 2 years
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15. In conclusion …
• UNGNA 1.0 starts to articulate UN joint
programming and action
• UNGNA 1.0 is a living document, not a blueprint
• currently we focus on SUN countries
• principles and priorities apply to UN agencies’
efforts to support the achievement of nutrition
goals worldwide
• we shall be eporting in 2 years about progress
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