The UN System Network for Scaling Up Nutrition

Francesco Branca

UNSCN Executive Secretary

UN Network meeting

Nairobi, 26 August 2013

The Global Nutrition Architecture

The international nutrition

system – made up of

international and donor

organisations, academia,

civil society, and the private

sector- is fragmented and

dysfunctional.

The Lancet Nutrition Series n°5, 2008

The Global Nutrition Architecture

Malnutrition has different

faces

Involves a wide array of

interventions and

Involves many players Communities

Civil

Society

Donors

Private

sector

UN

Agencies

academia

Governments

Here comes the SUN…..

• The SUN Vision:

… collective efforts of governments, organizations and

individuals – working together towards the vision of ending

hunger and malnutrition in all its forms so that within our

lifetimes, every mother, child and family can realize their full

potential and right to adequate nutritious food.

• The SUN mission:

…. high quality and tailored support for efforts to scale up

nutrition in line with both national and global targets. …

harmonize strategies and programs in ways that reflect best

practices, increase investments in the most successful

outcomes and ensure accountability to those they seek to

serve as well as to each other.

The UN network officially established on June 8 2013

UN Network vision and added value

Vision

UN agencies jointly play a key role in guiding and

supporting SUN countries’ efforts in scaling up

nutrition actions in line with country-level requests

and needs to improve nutrition security

Value added

very broad country presence of the UN which is a

foundation for the Network to build upon

UN Network Functions

• Improved interagency support to SUN Movement

participating countries, according to their needs

and upon request

• Providing the link among UN agencies and liaison

with the other SUN networks to enhance dialogue

and foster partnerships and mutual accountability

for joint, complementary and coordinated nutrition

action among UN agencies

UN Network functionsat global level

• Increase coordination between UN agencies

• building consensus on joint UN guiding principles and

approaches to nutrition

• fostering a common understanding of the complementarity

of agency responsibilities

• Promote nutrition activities within UN agencies

• Function as a knowledge center

• forum for providing guidance to critical and new emerging

issues relating to nutrition

• Global advocacy

• World Health Assembly, UN General Assembly, Committee

on Food Security, G8 and G20

•

UN Network functionsat country level

• Support countries in scaling up nutrition

through UN nutrition team

• Facilitate joint and coordinated UN

approach

• review of UNDAF guidelines for

nutrition

Provide support to UN nutrition team

Modus operandi

Country level activities

• Substantial UN presence and operations in SUN countries

• REACH is providing intensive support in 13 of the 41 SUN countries, facilitating UN country teams to strengthen national nutrition policies and action plans and leveraging Agencies’ technical support

• Expansion of appropriate UN System Network support to the additional SUN countries (intense, moderate or remote support models) considered and financial implications evaluated

Nature of UN support to SUN countries

FAO IFAD WFP WHO UNICEF Total Support

in countries

out of 21

Policy advice 7 1 5 11 5 17

Program 7 18 18 9 20 20

Capacity building 5 2 5 7 2 17

Surveillance 1 - - 5 - 7

Coordination 3 - - 4 - 7

Applied Research 1 - - - - 1

Examples of UN collaborative supportTotal number of

countries

Countries

UNDAF Framework 18

majority with nutrition

components

Expired (year):

Haiti (2009-2011)

Nigeria (2009-2012)

Sri Lanka (2008-2012)

Madagascar (Interim UNDAF 2012-2013)

UN Joint Programming 8 Burundi, Gambia, Indonesia, Kenya,

Madagascar, Senegal, Yemen, Zimbabwe

Thematic group on

nutrition / food and

nutrition security / etc.

10 Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Guatemala,

Kenya, Laos, Madagascar, Namibia, Senegal,

Zimbabwe

Alliance Against Hunger

& Malnutrition (AAHM)

membership

9 Benin, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Haiti,

Indonesia, Laos, Nigeria, Peru, Senegal

Other 2 Benin: WHO+UNICEF conduct monthly

coordination meetings

Laos: WHO, UNICEF and WFP collaborate in

national implementation of MNCH service

package.

Global level activities

• Establishment and launch of

the UN network

• Expanding the UN Network

to other UN agencies

• Convening dialogue on

Nutrition sensitive

development

• Supporting the discussion

on nutrition security at the

Committee for Food Security

Collaborating with other networks

• Contribute to

establish/strengthen

global mechanisms for

monitoring indicators

and tracking nutrition

targets and goals

• Contribute to the

management of the

Multi-partner Trust

Fund

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