Mary Robinson has been appointed by the United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon, to the lead group of SUN, the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement.
President of the Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice, Mary Robinson, has been appointed by the United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon, to the lead group of SUN, the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement.
Mrs Robinson joins 26 others, including Tom Arnold, CEO of Concern Worldwide, along with Heads of State and representatives from business, development agencies and international organisations on the influential group.
“It is an honour to be appointed by the UN Secretary-General to be part of such an important initiative,” Mrs Robinson said.
“The right to food is one of the most basic human rights but still over one billion people in the world are under-nourished and every year millions of children die because they lack adequate food and nutrition. We know that increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events heightens the risk of food insecurity and under-nutrition.”
“We must act with urgency to improve the nutrition of the most vulnerable children in order to give them a healthy start in life.”
The SUN Movement is a global push for action and investment to improve maternal and child nutrition. It has a specific focus on improving nutrition during the period between pregnancy and a child’s second birthday. Evidence shows that proper nutrition during this 1000 day period gives children a healthy start in life. Poor nutrition during this period leads to irreversible consequences such as stunted growth and impaired cognitive development.
The lead group will represent countries, organisations and sectors working to improve nutrition. Its role is to ensure that the countries involved in the Movement are supported as they work to create improvements in nutrition. The group will provide strategic oversight and help to mobilise support and strengthen coordination and accountability within the movement.
Related:
SUN Movement Progress Report launched in New York – 09 October 2012