Everyone must box clever for the sake of Nutrition for Growth

Dan Irvine tells decision-makers heading to Paris to determine the future of nutrition for the world’s children that they must think beyond business as usual. 

19 March, 2025 

At the end of the month, the world has a choice to make, one that really will shape the future for hundreds of millions of malnourished children, and their communities, and their countries.  
 
Those decision-makers who are heading to Paris for the Nutrition for Growth Summit during 27 and 28 March, know the statistics:  

• More than 713 million people in the world faced hunger in 2023
• 45 million children suffering from wasting—extreme malnutrition
• 37 million children overweight
• Two out of three girls and women suffering from micronutrient deficiencies 

They also know that the effort to deal with the current and future threat of malnutrition to vulnerable men, women and children is massively underfunded. The crowd in Paris will be acutely aware that financial resources are not likely to significantly increase to address this situation, and they will therefore be looking for efficient alternatives – boxing clever. 

Think again about funding 

That phrase, ‘box clever’ is thought to come from the sport of boxing; it means fighting strategically, using innovative thinking. That’s exactly what is urgently needed for Nutrition for Growth to announce anything other than a disappointing drop in expected funding at the summit’s conclusion.  

This week, my organisation, World Vision and its sister organisation VisionFund announced that it would reach 3.2 million children each year with an investment of $1bn (with $1.1bn in microloans that will support nutrition-sensitive livelihood and entrepreneurship.)  

Much of this isn’t new funding specifically for nutrition, rather we’re working out how to leverage aspects of our other sectors—water, sanitation & hygiene, health, livelihoods, education—to meet nutrition needs, and boosting those. 

We’re a multisectoral agency with a diversity of funding portfolios that we’re bringing to bear on the nutrition jigsaw, because that’s what it is, a jigsaw puzzle. The sectors mentioned above all have a part to play in improving people’s nutrition, each is a puzzle piece. For example, ensuring people have access to proper water, sanitation and hygiene means children are less likely to lose nutrients to diarrhoea. 

Think again about civil society 

Anyone who has spent any time reviewing relief and development in any country will know that a mixed approach to planning, funding and delivery is the strongest approach. That’s no truer than when it comes to proper nutrition—it must be everyone’s business. 

Civil society is a key driver of development. As both private fundraising and implementing entities, non-governmental organisations bring catalytic resource and expertise to policy making tables. We bring decades of expertise, and the financial and moral support of millions of members of the public, of corporates, of major donors, and more. Most importantly, we walk alongside, and are part of, the communities we serve. 

Think again about communities