Leveraging Resources for Impact: Investing in Nutrition through Innovative Financing Mechanisms, Integration, and Country Leadership

Venue: Room Side Event 15
Organizers: ACTION, Results Canada, Global Health Advocates France, The Global Financing Facility, Government of France

This high-level session will explore how countries and global partners - such as multilateral institutions, development finance institutions, and philanthropic organizations, among others - can reshape the financing landscape to drive progress on nutrition. The discussion will spotlight how instruments like IDA21, the Global Financing Facility, and the Child Nutrition Fund can be leveraged to de-risk capital, strengthen co-financing structures, and catalyze scale, alongside innovative financing approaches, such as nutrition bonds, outcome-linked loans and targeted taxation to deliver impact on nutrition.

With a focus on country leadership, domestic resource mobilization, and integrated financing strategies, the session will highlight how embedding nutrition within climate, social protection, and public investment strategies can unlock blended finance and institutional capital. Ultimately, the session aims to outline a forward-looking, actionable agenda to close the global nutrition financing gap, enabling investors and governments to jointly accelerate progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and build resilient, high-impact development finance ecosystems.

Driving the Nutrition Economy: Unlocking private investment for healthier futures

Venue: Devex House at the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4)
Organizers: Devex, ATNi (Access to Nutrition initative), the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) and Paris Peace Forum (PPF)

The investment case for nutrition is compelling: for every USD1 invested in addressing undernutrition, a return of USD23 is expected. However, the business case for nutrition needs to be urgently and systemically strengthened by all stakeholders so that the private sector is more incentivised to produce healthier foods. Over the last century, the private sector has revolutionised what and how we eat. However, diets are now the leading cause of disease globally, and healthy diets are not accessible to all. Food environments are now dominated by unhealthy foods. At the same time, nutrition remains one of the most underfunded areas of development, with public resources overstretched and private investment limited by weak incentives and unclear accountability frameworks.

To meet this challenge, ATNi, GAIN, and PPF launched the Paris Declaration on Business & Nutrition 2030 at the 2025 Nutrition for Growth (N4G) Summit as a global effort to catalyze key action areas and solutions needed to create a stronger “Nutrition Economy” – a world where good nutrition is incentivized, measurable, and integrated into business models, finance strategies, and policy priorities. It calls for coordinated investment and accountability across public and private sectors to accelerate the availability and affordability of nutritious, sustainable diets for all.
This vision aligns directly with the goals of the Financing for Development (FfD) agenda.

Shaping a Nutrition Economy strengthens human capital, supports inclusive growth, and builds resilience. It is a cross-cutting investment in education, health, and productivity. A stronger Nutrition Economy presents a win at the systems level through better markets, at population level through reduced diet-related disease and at product level, through a company portfolio shift toward healthier, sustainably produced products.

FfD4 represents a critical reflection point, just months after launching the Paris Declaration at the 2025 Nutrition for Growth (N4G) Summit. It offers a unique opportunity to shape financial frameworks and commitments that will define the future of food systems and nutrition. As the community gathers to discuss mobilizing private capital for sustainable development, this session will showcase investment in the Nutrition Economy as a concrete path forward.

Fueling Development: Financing Smart Solutions for Nutrition

Venue: Main FfD4 Conference venue

Organizers: Government of France, SUN Movement, ATNI

In March 2025, the N4G Summit in Paris marked a historic milestone—mobilizing nearly US$28 billion in new commitments for nutrition. But the work is far from over. With a global financing gap of US$39–50 billion annually, the world still falls short of what’s needed to ensure every child, family, and nation can thrive.

As leaders gather at the Financing for Development (F4D) Summit in Spain, this high-level side event will make a compelling case: nutrition is not just a moral imperative—it’s a smart investment, including for capital market actors. With an ROI of 1:23, nutrition ranks among the most cost-effective development actions, unlocking co-benefits across health, education, gender equity, and economic growth. This session will celebrate the political and financial momentum catalyzed by the N4G Summit while urging governments, institutions, and investors to sustain and expand their financial commitments.

By showcasing how Governments, development banks, finance ministries, and capital market actors are embedding nutrition into broader investment portfolios, the discussion will highlight practical, scalable solutions, from blended finance vehicles to nutrition bonds and fiscal instruments, that are unlocking capital for nutrition and food systems transformation. The session will also serve as a platform to reaffirm the Global Compact on Nutrition Integration as a vehicle to operationalize cross-sector investor alignment and catalyze new financing pledges. 
 

Unlocking Sustainable Finance for Food Security, Climate Finance and Country Platform Approach 

Venue: Side event room 15 FIBES 2

Organizers: Governments of Somalia, Ireland, Senegal, International Institute for Environment and Development, Comic Relief