Meeting of the SUN Movement Lead Group

On Monday 18 September 2017, took place the meeting of the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement Lead Group, in the margins of the 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly. The meeting was held on the backdrop of significant challenges. After steadily declining for over a decade, global hunger appears to be on the rise, affecting 11 percent of the global population.

October 10, 2017 - Last update: February 13, 2023

On Monday 18 September 2017, took place the meeting of the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement Lead Group, in the margins of the 72^ndsession of the United Nations General Assembly. The meeting was held on the backdrop of significant challenges. After steadily declining for over a decade, global hunger appears to be on the rise, affecting 11 percent of the global population.

Food insecurity is affecting several SUN Movement countries and the destabilizing effects of conflict and climate associated shocks are leading to mass people movements and fragility. Coupled with growing urbanization and the drastically increasing double burden of undernutrition and obesity, the Lead Group meeting focused on how SUN Countries can practically address these issues.

We have it in the power to rewrite history by sharpening narrative and ending malnutrition once and for all!

David Nabarro, SUN Lead Group Member, Former Special Advisor to the UN Secretary-General on the 2030 Agenda

TonyLake #SUNLG Chair We’ve made great progress as Movement: 59 Countries & 3 INDstates; 2.500 civilsociety org & 400 companies & UNagencies pic.twitter.com/E8mYIIS30Y

— Scaling Up Nutrition (@SUN_Movement) September 18, 2017

The meeting resulted in a set of recommendations for member countries of the SUN Movement to focus on in their national contexts. SUN Lead Group members also outlined their individual actions and commitments moving forward in maintaining and increasing global political attention on nutrition in 2018 as the lynchpin for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

• Strengthen leadership, political commitment and coherent action for improved nutrition across crises response and development plans, in line with the 2016 World Humanitarian Summit outcomes.

• To advocate for the scale up of cost-effective actions which can be scaled up immediately, as well as leveraging the contributions of multiple sectors

• All stakeholders (businesses, civil society, donors, UN) in the SUN Movement should live up to their commitments and collaborate to address the multiple forms of malnutrition.

• Champion the added value of the SUN Movement as a country-led, multi-sectoral, multi-stakeholder approach for preventing malnutrition in all its forms and achieving the SDGs, and an important platform for fostering south-south collaboration.

• Strengthen the narrative on nutrition. Nutrition stands for protection, stimulation, human capital, resilience and yet women are most at risk and suffer from injustices.

• Acknowledge that the double burden of malnutrition threatens multiple SUN Movement countries. While the SUN Movement focuses on undernutrition, tackling the rising threat of overweight, obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is essential.

What have we achieved as a Movement? We have raised the importance of this type of work. Nutrition used to be just for experts but now it’s clear at the political level. And this group has played a clear role in that, in that it has a clear line to the political level.

Helle Thorning-Schmidt, CEO Save the Children International

A hard line between humanitarian and development assistance is outdated.
Clearly when it comes to nutrition challenge #UNGA @SUN_Movement pic.twitter.com/8oNB6ljcxM

— EuropeAid (@europeaid) September 18, 2017

SUN Movement Lead Group

The SUN Movement Lead Group has the overall responsibility for the Movements progress towards achieving its objectives. They ensure the alignment of all actors with the Movements Principles of Engagement and aim to preserve the Movements unique country driven character.