This is the case made in Why Nutrition is Foundational to Development, which United Against Malnutrition and Hunger (UAMH) has produced in partnership with the Global Panel on Agriculture and Food Systems for Nutrition.
Global malnutrition and hunger are arguably the starkest expressions of inequality, with a deprivation of nutrition impairing mental and physical development in childhood and productivity in later life. Yet malnutrition is treatable with cost-effective and simple interventions, and preventable with long-term action to address its root causes, such as poverty, inequality, and climate change. Our brief provides readers with a clear guide explaining nutrition’s role in early childhood development, health, gender, education, food systems, climate change, and conflict.
The authors argue that malnutrition and hunger should be restored as a UK international priority and suggest specific recommendations to support nutrition in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). These include: integrating nutrition services within national health systems; breaking the cycle between food systems and environmental degradation; prioritising the nutrition of women and girls; and increasing financing for long-term nutrition programmes to build resilience.
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