ONE’s reaction to Nutrition for Growth

Adrian Lovett, Europe Executive Director for  ONE, speaking from the Nutrition for Growth Summit, said:

“This summit marks the biggest milestone in two decades in the fight against child and maternal malnutrition. Robust pledges made by donors, civil society, the private sector and high burden countries are truly historic with a total $4.1 billion promised.  This represents a more than doubling  in current levels of funding.  Vital resources including those from DFID and the EU  will go a long way and will enable the international community to achieve our target of 20 million fewer stunted children and 1.7 million child lives saved by 2020.

“The crucial thread running through these commitments is an increased focus on transparency and accountability. As David Cameron said in his opening statement, without the lens of transparency,  the 2020 vision of reduced malnutrition will be impossible to achieve if progress cannot be tracked.

“Today’s announcements are a tribute to the dedication of campaigners around the world, especially here in Britain working together in the Enough Food for Everyone IF campaign. ONE is proud to be part of this effort.

“Nutrition for Growth marks the beginning of the next 1,000 days in the fight against malnutrition.  The true test of its impact will be to ensure that the final sprint to end extreme poverty sees real accelerated progress against senseless child deaths and needless stunted growth and development.  G8 leaders have the perfect opportunity to lift this from rhetoric to action at Lough Erne next week and safeguard the potential of millions of the world’s children.  Having finally hauled this issue up from the bottom of the world’s priority list, the greatest scandal of all would be to let it fall back.”