Former UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld said:
I cannot do everything—but everybody can do something.
The interconnected and transformative nature of the 2030 Agenda is ambitious and also achievable; however, it will not be realized by individual actors working alone.
The full potential of the Agenda can only be borne out if the capacities of all segments of society are marshalled through new and innovative approaches that bring multiple actors together to align behind the common goal of ending poverty and hunger for all, and for good. This challenge is most acute in the hardest-to-reach populations and the most difficult contexts, but here too the resolve of all stakeholders must be harnessed.
The United Nations system, governments, civil society, and the business community will have to cross traditional institutional boundaries, establish new partnerships, and pioneer new ways of working.
The 2030 Agenda will not be realized by individual actors working alone.
To engage actors at all levels, it is crucial to communicate the potential of the 2030 Agenda to transform the lives of individuals in both developing and developed countries, ensuring that all people understand what their governments have committed to, and allowing them to hold their leaders accountable. Individuals must be the drivers of the Agenda and not its passive subjects.
The experience of those working on food security, nutrition, and sustainable agriculture can provide examples of the type of innovative approaches needed to deliver on the 2030 Agenda. The last decade has witnessed the rise of different platforms, partnerships, and movements aimed at ending hunger and malnutrition in all its forms, from calorie deficiency and undernutrition to obesity, and at creating sustainable, resilient, and inclusive food systems. These experiments in partnership, collective impact, and multistakeholder stewardship provide lessons for our broader work in implementing the 2030 Agenda.
Zero Hunger Challenge
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Zero Hunger Challenge was launched in 2012 at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20).
Since then, it has galvanized a growing movement of multiple actors committed to making the vision of Zero Hunger and zero malnutrition a reality.
The mission of the Zero Hunger Challenge is:
- to bring together all stakeholders to communicate the importance of food security; nutrition; and inclusive, sustainable, and resilient agriculture in fulfilling the promise of the 2030 Agenda; and
- to encourage, engage, accelerate, and amplify collective action to create food systems that deliver for all people.
The Zero Hunger Challenge has inspired action at the country level and has ensured that food and nutrition security and sustainable agriculture remain high on the global development agenda.
Mirroring the nature of the 2030 Agenda, the Zero Hunger Challenge promotes integrated approaches that respond to the multiple, interconnected causes of hunger and malnutrition. The comprehensiveness of the approach reflects the reality of the challenges people face everywhere as they seek better agriculture and food systems that bring about improved nutrition and sustainable and resilient rural communities. It appreciates the role of food systems in safeguarding ecosystems and biodiversity and in minimizing negative impacts on climate. Grounded in the right of everyone to have access to adequate, safe, and nutritious food, the Zero Hunger vision can significantly contribute to the massive transformations needed to achieve this ambitious Agenda.
The Zero Hunger Challenge provides a principle-based platform for all actors—cities; governments; NGOs; businesses; the UN agencies, funds, and programs; research institutions; faith communities; philanthropies; chefs; students; and others—to align behind the common vision of ending hunger and poverty. Those supporting the Zero Hunger Challenge are encouraged to work to become Champions for Zero Hunger: to adopt innovative and visionary approaches at an institutional level to effect the transformative change envisaged.
The Zero Hunger Challenge also seeks to engage citizens in a Global Movement for Zero Hunger—harnessing the power of individuals to drive change and hold their leaders to account for their commitments. The Zero Hunger Challenge, with all its components, illustrates the kind of shift in thinking needed to end hunger and malnutrition and to achieve the transformations at the heart of the 2030 Agenda.
Compact2025
Another platform that exemplifies this shift in thinking is Compact2025, led by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
Compact2025 underlines the importance of research and knowledge to deliver and accelerate development gains. It includes a global knowledge and innovation hub to experiment, learn, and share evidence for pragmatic, action-oriented strategies. The focus is on stimulating innovation, communicating research on what works, synthesizing lessons, collecting data, and monitoring progress. In doing so, the initiative provides a multisectoral and multistakeholder space that complements and leverages existing initiatives and networks.
Compact2025 can assist countries to refine and implement effective roadmaps for action by creating a network of researchers and policymakers who identify evidence and gaps, with a focus on implementation at the national and subnational levels. Success stories provide a strong base from which to learn.
For example, expanding effective social protection programs and nutrition interventions has led to a dramatic drop in poverty, hunger, and undernutrition in Brazil. In China, helping smallholder farmers produce and purchase nutritious foods has boosted the income of the rural population. Such experiences of social protection–led strategies in Brazil or smallholder agriculture–led strategies in China shorten the learning curve and provide us with models that can be adapted and replicated for other countries.
Complementing Compact2025, other IFPRI projects, such as Nourishing Millions: Stories of Change in Nutrition and the Global Nutrition Report, showcase success stories in nutrition, encouraging cross-border learning between countries and regions.
This type of knowledge-sharing provides far-reaching insight and value for the achievement of Zero Hunger and the 2030 Agenda. These projects highlight the potential of innovative approaches that bring together multiple actors in support of country-led action.
These are just two examples, however; many others exist, including the Committee on World Food Security (CFS), with its innovative multistakeholder mechanism, which allows all stakeholders to work together to develop and endorse policy recommendations and guidance on a wide range of food security and nutrition topics with a view to ensuring food security and nutrition for all.
Additionally, the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement brings together 57 countries, whose leaders are prioritizing efforts to address malnutrition. Since its inception in 2010, the SUN Movement has helped create a space for interaction between SUN countries and an increasingly diverse set of stakeholders, reflecting the multiplicity of tactics needed to fight malnutrition. Strong national movements have emerged that are taking their own country-led approaches and putting the systems in place that will effectively address their own unique challenges.