Context

Equitable access to nutritious food is a critical prerequisite for achieving global equity, ensuring human rights, preventing the rise of global health issues such as stunting and wasting, and reducing mortality rates in LDCs. Nutrition has become especially relevant with the ongoing worldwide food crisis, which has pushed the number of people grappling with acute food insecurity up from 135 million people in 53 countries in 2019 to 345 million people in 73 countries in 2023.

Food systems are especially critical to achieving food security, including ensuring access to sustainable and healthy diets through the production of nutritious foods and the development of dietary habits containing highly nutritious products. The importance of NFS is even more critical considering the ongoing climate crisis, which has stressed fragile food production systems globally.

Funding Trends and Outlook

How is ODA to NFS evolving?

Between 2017 and 2021, ODA funding to NFS has steadily increased, with an average growth rate of 23% and a visible peak in 2020. The heightened interest can be attributed to additional funding provided to mitigate adverse effects of the global pandemic and recurring climate-related events. The 2021 Nutrition for Growth Summit in Tokyo, Japan, was a key moment where bilateral and multilateral stakeholders emphasized their support for nutrition and sustainable food systems.

In 2021, ODA to NFS reached US$1.1 billion, including DAC, MDBs, private donor, and other multilateral funding flows. Traditional ODA from DAC donors comprised US$1.05 billion of this total and represented 96% of total funding for the space.

In 2022, the NFS sector suffered from significant overall ODA budget cuts in former prominent donors, particularly Germany and the Netherlands. This is largely attributable to the reprioritization of funding to other efforts, such as the war in Ukraine.

How is nutritional ODA funded?

Bilateral funding:

96%, or US$1.05 billion, of funding flowed bilaterally in 2021, of which 99% was in the form of grants. This included funding channeled as earmarked contributions through multilaterals. The top 5 donors to NFS represent 79% of total DAC funding to the sector.

The primary motivation behind US motivation to fund NFS lies in driving positive global health outcomes and putting an end to preventable child and maternal fatalities. The EU’s interest in NFS is driven by its impact on maternal and child nutrition. Germany’s is driven by NFS’ direct connection to food and nutrition security. Germany launched a special initiative, entitled ONE WOLRD – No Hunger, in 2014.

Multilateral funding:

4%, or US$43 million, of funding for NFS flowed from multilaterals in 2021. The top multilateral donors to NFS in 2021 include the FAO and the ADB representing 100% of total multilateral funding to the sector.