Exciting progress has been made in the struggle against global malnutrition, but many obstacles remain.

By Jordan Teague, senior international policy advisor

There is no silver bullet that will end malnutrition, but this paper presents an agenda of policies and practices that offer a clear way forward when combined with investments in proven, effective nutrition services.

These include, for example, treatment or preventive treatment of children affected by wasting, multiple micronutrient supplementation for pregnant women, adequate breastfeeding/complementary feeding for infants, and Vitamin A supplementation for children.

In order to make significant lasting progress, all stakeholders—including the U.S. government—in all sectors will need to contribute to strategic, cohesive, and coordinated action to:

• Bolster nutrition governance structures and mechanisms
• Align investments with regional and national nutrition strategies, plans, and systems
• Invest in nutrition capacity in health services
• Invest in building both supply and demand for nutritious foods
• Improve equity in policies and practices in order to advance nutrition for people at highest risk
• Strengthen community resilience to protect nutrition gains

While positive gains have been made against malnutrition this century, urgent action is still required to reach good nutrition for all. This agenda of policies and practices, in addition to investment in proven, effective nutrition services—such as treatment or preventive treatment of children affected by wasting, multiple micronutrient supplementation for pregnant women, adequate breastfeeding/complementary feeding for infants, and Vitamin A supplementation for children—offers a clear way forward. View full report.

"We have a unique opportunity to embrace the scale of the challenge ahead and commit to holistic, systemic changes…"

— Gerda Verburg, Scaling Up Nutrition Movement