New tools: Multi-sectoral planning and designing multi-stakeholder platforms

In 2019-2021, two user-friendly and informative toolkits were launched, with support from SUN Movement partners, to guide member States create or improve multi-stakeholder platforms and to carry out multi-sectoral planning for nutrition.

Nutrition is a multi-faceted challenge which requires action by multiple stakeholders, driven by passionate leadership at the highest levels – for results and lasting impact. The unique country-led and country-driven SUN Movement approach helps nations bring together multiple stakeholders and multiple sectors to, in unison, address high levels of hunger and malnutrition.

This toolkit was created in response to requests for technical assistance on how to manage intersectoral coordination for nutrition through multi-stakeholder platforms (MSPs) for nutrition and focuses on the design of successful MSPs, with support from Nutrition International under the Technical Assistance for Nutrition (TAN) project, funded with UK aid from the UK government. It offers definitions, explanations, practical tools and guides, and examples from countries which have already undertaken aspects of MSP design. It does not provide information on multi-sectoral implementation, which is one of the main aims of many MSPs, but rather how to design an MSP to coordinate and oversee this implementation.

How it works: You can use this toolkit in two ways: follow the set of pathways aiming to guide users or browse to find the topics you are looking for in a particular area.

This toolkit was created to leverage MQSUN (+)’s experience supporting SUN countries to document and share approaches, key learnings and positive practices in multi-sectoral nutrition planning. It aims to provide guidance and associated resources for countries to carry out this process. Although this toolkit primarily draws from MQSUN+ experience in supporting multi-sectoral nutrition planning at the national level, many of these steps can be adapted to the sub-national level based on the country context. The tools and resources stem from established literature, as well as ones developed or adapted by MQSUN(+) over the course of its TA provision.

How it works: You can use this toolkit to get an overview of relevant steps within the country-led process, to find guidance on approaches and/or to identify appropriate and useful resources to support this process. The toolkit aims to guide users through each step and highlight reference documents, country examples and resource packages.

On 27 October 2021, these toolkits were presented to some 30 technical assistance providers and partners who are playing an active role in supporting multi-stakeholder platform (MSP) design and multi-sectoral planning efforts. The webinar aimed to explain what they are, how they work and how they can be used by technical assistance partners and providers, in practice, to accelerate progress in multi-sectoral nutrition actions.

The webinar was be divided into three segments. The first presentation looked at the toolkit on designing multi-stakeholder platforms for nutrition, the second unpacked the toolkit on multi-sectoral planning, followed by a testimonial on how this has been used in practice. The session also included a Q&A segment. Ellen Barclay, SUN Movement Secretariat Chief of Staff, opened the session.