The mobilization of both states and private donors was evident at the summit against malnutrition held Thursday and Friday in Paris, but will not be enough in the face of the decline in international aid, particularly from the United States, organizers and participants emphasized.
"Our collective action can make the difference between stagnation and progress, between vulnerability and resilience," said Afshan Khan, UN Under-Secretary-General, closing the "Nutrition for Growth" meeting.
"But we cannot ignore the fact that we are closing this summit at a time of great financial challenge: recent aid cuts are estimated at 44% by (the coalition of experts) +Standing together for nutrition+, and despite the strong commitments (collected in Paris, Editor's note), the impacts of these longer-term cuts will go beyond emergency programs, and will affect essential health services, school feeding programs, agricultural programs, water sanitation programs, etc."
The 2025 edition of this meeting, traditionally held every four years in the host city of the Olympic Games, was the first major development event since Donald Trump announced the near-dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
It comes at a time when public development aid has already been declining in recent years in Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom, etc., in a context of economic difficulties and increased military spending.
– “Dignity and stability” –
Between hunger, undernutrition, but also excess weight and diseases linked to ultra-processed diets, more than 2.8 billion people suffer from malnutrition, in the South as well as in the North, according to the FAO.
During these two days, according to the organizers, $27.55 billion in financial commitments over four years were collected, which will be monitored by the "Global Nutrition Report" platform, managed by the American NGO Path.
This is more than the results of the previous Nutrition Summit, held in Tokyo, which was half funded by the United States, stressed Brieuc Pont, secretary general of this French edition.
This sum comes from governments, development banks, and American philanthropic organizations (which have announced more than $2 billion in donations). Among these, the Bezos family foundation has pledged up to $500 million to UNICEF, which, without naming Washington, had warned on Wednesday of the vital risks faced by millions of children due to drastic aid cuts.
The World Bank estimates that the need to eradicate malnutrition is $13 billion per year.
This meeting "will remain a crucial step in the fight against malnutrition," said Marjeta Jager, Deputy Director-General for International Cooperation at the European Commission. "Nutrition is dignity and stability."
– In Los Angeles in 2028? –
She mentioned a European commitment (collective and member states) of 6.5 billion euros, "showing the leading role" of Europe, "a stable and reliable partner."
The French Minister of International Partnerships, Thani Mohamed Soilihi, who chaired the event, noted the presence of 106 states, alongside NGOs, youth movements, development banks, etc.
"Nutrition permeates all issues; it is a central lever for development," and "one of the most profitable," since one dollar invested in nutrition generates 23 dollars of wealth, he emphasized.
France, for its part, estimates that it will devote "more than 750 million euros" to nutrition over five years.
But for Action Against Hunger (ACF), which "welcomes an unprecedented political mobilization," "this momentum has not translated into financial commitments commensurate with the challenges." On the French side in particular, this is "a huge disappointment," while civil society was demanding double that amount, i.e., a return to the 2020 level, the NGO responded.
The United States, beyond nutrition alone, was by far the largest contributor to global humanitarian aid, with more than $64 billion in 2024, or $421 billion of the total.
Will the country, which will host the 2028 Games (Los Angeles), host the next nutrition summit? "We hope so; we are in constant dialogue with the United States to ensure the movement continues," said Mohamed Soilihi.
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