Strengthening Nutrition Action

This document supports stakeholders in translating the Second International Conference on Nutrition into specific country-specific actions, through 24 thematic sheets, ranging from food loss and waste prevention to social protection for nutrition.

FAO and WHO have developed this resource guide to support Member States, and regional and global communities to stimulate nutrition action and to consider the relevance of each of the recommended policies and actions included in the ICN2 and its Framework for Action (FfA). Includes 24 thematic guidance sheets to help countries and other stakeholders in translating the generic ICN2 FfA recommendations into concrete, measurable country commitments for action.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) supports the mainstreaming of nutrition into national development plans and activities to strengthen agriculture, food, health, education and social protection systems, among other things. This guidance note helps integrating nutrition across the UNSDCF cycle. It is designed to be flexible and applicable in all phases of the Cooperation Framework, highlighting opportunities to integrate and strengthen the focus on nutrition throughout the process. The guidance note complements other existing tools developed by specialized United Nations’ agencies, programmes and funds, as well as by the UN-Nutrition Secretariat, and it can be equally utilized in countries under the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) or the UNSDCF.

The Nutrition-Friendly Schools Initiative (NFSI) was developed in 2006 to provide a framework for ensuring integrated school-based programmes which address the double burden of nutrition-related ill health and to become the nutrition module of the Health Promoting Schools. The NFSI has since been used around the world, including as a self-appraisal tool for schools in 18 countries, in national NFSI programmes and as part of academic research and evaluation projects. The NFSI Framework outlines 26 essential criteria within five broad components: 1. school nutrition policies, 2. awareness and capacity building of the school community, 3. nutrition and health promoting curricula, 4. supportive school environment for good nutrition, and 5. supportive school nutrition and health services. This review summarizes the synthesized evidence from 117 reviews identified as relating to the five components and the 26 essential criteria of the NFSI. The findings may be used — in conjunction with existing UN and WHO guidance and tools — to inform the work of governments, policy-makers and researchers concerned with school-based health and nutrition promotion programmes and initiatives.

This book aims to contribute the knowledge and understanding of nutritional impact of food systems. Focus is also be given to food systems elements status identification, policy analysis to examine potential effects of different policy options throughout the food system, in particular policies in agriculture, food marketing and trade, social protection, gender, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) on food industry, nutrition, and environment and education etc. Good practice and lessons learnt to strengthen the beneficiary countries’ evidence-base for addressing nutrition related challenges from the food system perspective.

This is the second of three background papers produced to inform the ‘Everyone Around the Table: FAO/GAIN Roundtable with Private Sector on Healthy Diets’ virtual roundtable series scheduled for mid-2020. While the range of topics discussed is relevant to all countries, where possible a greater focus has been given to low- and middle-income country contexts. STEP 2 (this paper) sets out some channels to advance this agenda by improving the enabling environment – the policies, incentives, rules and regulations that shape behaviours (and enable good practice). Though governments lead in this area, there are clear responsibilities for all stakeholders.

WHO is promoting the implementation of a package of game changing food systems actions, that complement each other and focus on improving the nutritional quality of food along the food supply chain and creating healthier food environments. Today’s food systems are simply failing to deliver healthy diets for all. If food systems are transformed, they can become a powerful driving force towards ending hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition in all its forms. WHO is promoting this package of actions also in the context of the UN Food Systems Summit, the Tokyo Nutrition for Growth Summit 2021, as well as for the uptake of the CFS Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition. The package of actions comprises of taxing unhealthy options and subsidising healthy options, protecting children from harmful marketing of food and beverages, ensuring clear and accurate nutrition labels, reducing the levels of salt, sugars and harmful fats in processed food and drink products, fortifying staple foods by adding extra vitamins and minerals, ensuring nutritious foods for healthier diets are served or sold in schools, hospitals and other public places, improving surveillance of and response to foodborne diseases and assessing and strengthening national food control systems. This information brief outlines for each of these actions what it is about and why it is important, with reference to WHO guidance. Moreover, country case studies are presented and examples of SMART commitments for interested countries.