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Background

COP28 will be GAIN's third COP, and our first as an accredited NGO. At COP27, we participated in two key sessions on the Presidency programme (including the official high-level launch of the Initiative on Climate Action and Nutrition and a roundtable session on food security and climate), as well as a wide range of events in the Food Systems Pavilion, Food4Climate Pavilion, Food and Agriculture Pavilion, and other pavilions where food systems were featured. Highlights included the Food Systems Pavilion plenary event on nutrition and climate, and a side-event with the Government of Bangladesh and ICCCAD at the Bangladesh Pavilion.
 
We published a wide range of blogs and articles (all of which can be found on the GAIN@COP27 web page) and participated in media interviews and press conferences, all seeking to highlight the various ways in which climate and nutrition are linked - and how climate action can improve nutrition outcomes. We also co-signed a joint letter from the Food Systems Pavilion calling for stronger commitment to food systems transformation in the Koronivia negotiations, as they threatened to stall. 
 
During our two weeks at COP27, we had the opportunity to meet many colleagues and partners, notably at the Eat4Change Dinner co-organised by WWF, the Global Alliance for the Future of Food, the Rockefeller Foundation and GAIN. And we established new relationships with the UAE Presidency ahead of COP28, meeting officials at for a consultation and dinner event on the sidelines of the conference.

Full Events list GAIN is attending at COP28

Road to COP28

Building on the progress made for food systems at COP27, the last year has been a busy one for GAIN and partners. The UAE Presidency has been highly engaged in organising a strong food agenda at COP28, resulting in the first formal Food Day on the official programme.
 
Throughout the year, GAIN (along with many other partners) has given significant input into the Presidency's strategic planning, attending workshops in Abu Dhabi and participating in various consultations. GAIN supports the Presidency Initiatives planned for COP28 and will play an active role in promoting them and delivering on the objectives.
 
GAIN and partners also provided multiple submissions to the Sharm El Sheikh Joint Work on Implementation of Climate Action on Agriculture and Food Security, with a view to influencing the negotiating agenda at COP28.

 GAIN also had a presence at Africa Climate Week, the African Food Systems Forum, New York Climate Week / UNGA, CFS, the World Food Prize, the Micronutrient Forum, and Asia-Pacific Climate Week.

Find out more about GAIN@COP27

Strategy

GAIN Strategy for COP28

GAIN's Environment programme focuses on the two-way relationship between food systems and the environment. Food systems are a driver of environmental harm, and also a victim of climate change and the degradation of our natural ecosystems. To learn more about these linkages, please take a look at our Environment-Nutrition Infographic or watch our Interview Cruncher on Climate Change, Nutrition and Food Security. Our focus at COP27 was to highlight the importance of this two-way relationship to promote integrated action to achieve multiple outcomes across human and planetary health.
 
We will bring a similar message to COP28. Whereas last year we joined a global call to action, this year we will shift our focus to country-level implementation.

Firstly, the Initiative on Climate Action and Nutrition addresses multiple ways in which interventions can be designed to benefit both climate and nutrition at national level. For example, it considers integration of nutrition in NDCs, NAPs, and other key climate policies - and, on the reverse, the integration of climate in key nutrition policies. This builds on the paper published in October 2023 about the current state of integration and opportunities to accelerate action. 

Secondly, events at country pavilions offer the opportunity to engage with key stakeholders directly, as well as to share tangible examples of coherent action across food systems. Building on the success of last year's event at the Bangladesh Pavilion, we will seek further opportunities to engage with our national partners.

Thirdly, the official negotiations and the Presidency agenda on food systems present multiple entry points for country-level action, including the Leaders' Declaration, Alliance of Champions on Food, and the Sharm el Sheikh Joint Work on Implementation of Climate Action on Agriculture and Food Security. We will work with partners to amplify and support these initiatives, including in GAIN countries.

Attendees from GAIN

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Conclusion

What are the applications of the I-CAN baseline report findings towards improving climate and nutrition outcomes?

First, the report identifies opportunities for countries, businesses, and development agencies to improve integration of climate and nutrition action to spur acceleration in the outcomes of both. For example, many initiatives target food and agriculture broadly, which could be leveraged to include more explicit considerations of nutrition.

Second, there are bright spots with certain countries, businesses and agencies leading the way. The NDC of Benin, the Climate NAP of Bangladesh, and the NNP of Ethiopia are all best practices included in the I-CAN baseline report. Cross-learning and information sharing will go a long way towards integrated climate and nutrition advancements.

Third, the actions that serve to accelerate climate and nutrition need to become better understood and socialised. FAO’s I-CAN paper, Climate Action and Nutrition: Pathways to Impact, highlights four core systems: agri-food, water, social protection, and health, where opportunities to further advance climate-nutrition integration exist.

Fourth, there were many challenges in collecting the baseline data. For example, an area which we could not assess includes the amount of agriculture research and development funding that links climate and nutrition. We hope that methods for collecting integrated climate-nutrition data will be improved and hence enhance data availability in the future.

Fifth, we very much hope that individual countries will use the baseline to set their own targets for some of these indicators. All country-level data used in our analysis are available upon request. Tracking of indicators towards targets will help governments assess progress and identify areas where more support can be brought to bear.

2030 is drawing close. Time is of the essence as we strive to achieve the SDGs, aiming to eliminate hunger and malnutrition whilst ensuring positive impacts for climate action and our natural environment. With sustained and combined efforts, closer integration between climate and nutrition is possible, and will have positive impacts on the lives of millions around the world – today and tomorrow.