David Nabarro, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for Food Security and Nutrition

This inaugural 1,000 Days blog post comes at an opportune time. As an increasing number of countries commit to Scale up Nutrition, different organizations that are actively engaged in support for nutritional outcomes are intensifying their support. They include a range of development partners, the World Bank, UN systems’ organizations and the multi-agency REACH initiative, civil society organizations, research groups and entities from the private sector. They are working together within the context of the Movement to Scale Up Nutrition (SUN) which was launched at the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 21st 2010: this Movement takes its name from the Framework to Scale Up Nutrition which was released in April 2010 after receiving endorsements from more than 100 different stakeholders. The UN Standing Committee on Nutrition plays a central role in supporting the SUN movement.

The central feature of the SUN movement is that it is led by countries, and that external support is coordinated, coherent and aligned to national plans. The 1000 Days initiative is key to the SUN movement. First – it focuses attention on the 1000 day window between pregnancy and a child’s second birthday when good nutrition is so important. Second – it encourages concerted efforts in the 1000 days between September 2010 and June 2013 with a view to accelerating progress towards the realization of the First Millennium Development Goal for reductions in poverty and hunger. As an initiative focused on advocacy, 1000 Days is here to inspire us as we work for a substantial impact on the lives and health of women and children at risk of under-nutrition.

This “1000 Days blog” will provide an opportunity for those involved in nutrition, from national, regional and global levels alike, to share experiences and report on their progress with scaling up nutrition. It will be good if this space is used by all stakeholders who are committed to supporting countries’ efforts through the SUN movement. I hope that it will enable the exchange of ideas, encouraging mutual learning and synergy of action. I anticipate it will help build momentum for converting intentions to action and results. As Governments take action to enable all people to enjoy food and nutrition security, those of us who seek to help them are responsible for ensuring that our contributions are coordinated and effective. The blog can help us to do this.

Here are the figures. Today levels of global hunger and child under-nutrition remain stubbornly and unacceptably high. Millions of children continue to die every year because they lack access to adequate food and nutrition. In 2010, 925 million people experienced chronic hunger and nearly two billion people lacked the micronutrients needed for good health. Progress in reducing under-nutrition has not matched the aspirations of the Millennium Development Goals for the reduction in poverty and hunger: in 2005 almost 182 million children under five in developing countries were stunted, 114 million were underweight and 55 million children were wasted. With 20% percentage of the world’s children underweight in 2005 we are still well short of the 2015 MDG target of 14.5%.

And behind these figures lie millions of individual tragedies, made all the more stark because there is abundant knowledge about how they can be prevented. Investing in nutrition during the 1,000 day window of opportunity between pregnancy and a child’s second birthday can protect against the irreversible impact on their cognitive and physical development, mitigate against disease and reduce the burden on health care systems, increase school attendance and educational attainment and improve economic prosperity and the ability of all citizens to reach their full potential. We know that sustainable and lasting improvements will be generated through development programmes that are sensitive to the realities of under-nutrition in a range of sectors including agriculture, social protection and education. We know that investments in well tested and low cost interventions can protect the nutrition of vulnerable individuals and their communities, and save lives.

This burden of knowledge is driving a renewed focus on food security and nutrition, presenting opportunities for coordinated and coherent actions that will contribute to economic, social and human development that is universal, equitable and based on human rights. National governments are committing to achieving sustained and significant reductions in levels of child under-nutrition; development partners are aligning their support to these national priorities, and a vast array of stakeholders from civil society, the research community, private sector and our United Nations system are working towards mobilizing for effective joint action and encouraging institutional coherence. Nutrition leaders, from local communities to those in Government seek the convergence of their skills and learning to improve the nutritional status and lives of vulnerable populations worldwide.

I am delighted to be part of the 1000 Days initiative, working within the SUN Movement and joining many others who are supporting national efforts to scale up nutrition. By working together and utilizing our different strengths we will best be able to support Governments as they seek to ensure quantitative, qualitative and lasting improvements in nutritional outcomes.