FAQ

The first 1,000 days, or the thousand day window of opportunity, is recognized as the time between a woman’s pregnancy and her child’s second birthday. It is the most critical period of growth and development in a child’s life, hence the importance of good nutrition during this period for both the child and mother.

Proper nutrition during this period provides the essential building blocks for brain development, healthy growth and a strong immune system. No amount of food can cure a stunted child: good nutrition must start early to prevent stunting before it starts.

It is not a fund, an institution or an agency, rather it is a “movement” of nutrition actors working together to strengthen political commitments on nutrition and accountability for those commitments. Governments are part of the SUN Movement through their voluntary membership as SUN Countries, while other actors become members of the SUN Networks. The SUN Movement Secretariat works to facilitate the SUN Movement in achieving its strategic objectives, and to support SUN Countries to achieve their national nutrition goals. The SUN Movement Coordinator is appointed by the United Nations Secretary-General and leads the SUN Movement. While the SUN Movement Secretariat is hosted by the United Nations Office for Project Services, the Movement belongs to all of its members: countries, civil society, United Nations agencies, scientists, parliamentarians, journalists, entrepreneurs, professional associations, community organizers, medical practitioners, civil servants and business leaders who understand that improving nutrition is key to unlocking a better future for children across the globe.

The SUN Movement approach is one that prioritizes country-led and country-driven, multisectoral and multistakeholder actions. In this regard, it is driven by the nutrition prioritizes of the member SUN Countries. All members of the SUN Movement are committed to the idea that by aligning behind national nutrition priorities, we can amplify the reach and impact of every stakeholder’s work and scale up nutrition in a faster, more equitable and sustainable way. This requires action across all sectors, with people from all stakeholder groups and at all levels – national, district, community. This approach is the foundation of the SUN Movement Strategy. The approach is the foundation of the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement Strategy 3.0 2021–2025.

Countries may become a member by contacting the SUN Country Action Team at cat@scalingupnutrition.org. If you are a civil society organization, business, United Nations agency or donor agency, contact the relevant SUN Network to become a member. As an individual, you can participate in many of our stakeholder events and actions, sign up to receive our latest news for more information

Within each SUN Country, the government nominates a SUN Government Focal Point who convenes multistakeholder platforms that bring together actors from all sectors that are relevant to nutrition. The SUN Movement Lead Group and SUN Executive Committee provide overarching governance and stewardship of the SUN Movement itself.

Donors are involved in the SUN Movement in various capacities.

The SUN Donor Network currently comprises 17 donors and financial institutions active in the food and nutrition space. Through the Network, donors provide guidance on financing for nutrition together with the SUN Executive Committee Financing Task Team as well as ensure a coordinated global voice on nutrition action among Network members.

Donors also act as high-level emissaries for the SUN Movement through their representation in the SUN Executive Committee and SUN Lead Group, the governance bodies of the SUN Movement, with the aim to advocate for and drive accelerated action on malnutrition at the highest levels in support of the achievement of the WHO Nutrition Targets and Sustainable Development Goal 2.

Last but not least, donors play an important role as funders of all parts of the SUN Movement directly and via their Nutrition for Growth commitments.

Donors fund SUN Countries through bilateral and multilateral funding avenues and initiatives. Countries can request technical assistance as a last resort such as capacity building support on resource mobilization from the Global Support System (GSS), comprised of the four SUN Networks and the SUN Secretariat.

Each of the GSS members raises their own resources for scaling up nutrition. Key donors for the four networks include the Netherlands, Ireland, Switzerland, Germany and the UK, and all bilateral donor agencies contribute indirectly to UN Nutrition through their UN mandates. The SUN Secretariat and SUN Coordinator are supported by the Netherlands, European Union, Canada, Norway, Ireland, United States, Germany, France and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. View the Donor Report – SUN Movement Secretariat (2017-2021) for more information.

Designed as an innovative and catalytic grant mechanism, the SUN Pooled Fund, established in 2012 as a Multi Partner Trust Fund, offered seed funding to civil society alliances in countries to continuously advocate for nutrition as well as for the establishment of further 15 SUN business networks. Following the end of its second phase in 2022, the SUN Pooled Fund 3.0 (2023 – 2025) is under discussion.