Successful implementation of workforce nutrition programmes relies on gaining employer commitment; without it, activities cannot be adopted or sustained. Prior to the implementation of workforce nutrition programmes, employers must thus be brought on board with the approach. This paper draws on primary data from GAIN programme teams in
Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, and Uganda to analyse the strategies and processes used to gain this employer buy-in, including which strategies were effective, what challenges arose, and the underlying reasons.
Across Africa, agricultural production has grown steadily over the past few decades. Much of the continent’s yields from its food systems is strong. However, this growth has not converged on the plates of Africans into healthy diets. Millions of households still cannot access safe, affordable and nutritious food. There is a significant gap in what Africa grows and how Africa eats. With a renewed agenda to close this gap, the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) and the AGRA, on the sidelines of The Africa Food Systems Forum (AFSF), signed an LoI to make healthier diets more accessible, affordable, desirable and from more sustainable sources for all Africans.
GAIN’s membership in the Better Than Cash Alliance reflects the critical role of inclusive, equitable economic growth as a driver of food systems transformation.
Food trade plays a significant role in shaping food security and nutrition worldwide, with both positive and negative implications for diet quality. This is particularly relevant in West Africa, where persistent challenges such as low dietary diversity and limited affordability of healthy diets coexist with rapidly changing food consumption patterns.
Intra-regional food trade is especially important in this context, yet its scale and nutritional significance remain poorly understood due to the large share of trade that goes unrecorded in official statistics.
At AVPN Global Conference 2026 in New Delhi, GAIN will show how nutrition can be embedded across Asia’s food systems, investment strategies and development priorities — helping funders, investors and partners move from food production to better diets, stronger markets and more resilient communities.
Start Where You Are: A Story of Food, Conflict & Hope With Aida Eyasu
EP 33
At just 16, Ethiopian youth leader Aida turned wartime scarcity into a calling — cooking for her…
GAIN joins the Africa Food Systems (AFSF) Forum 2026 in Kigali to spotlight how smarter investment in agri-food systems can drive healthier diets, stronger markets and more resilient communities across Africa.
The 2026 Food Systems Countdown Report reveals that progress is too slow and insufficient to meet 2030 goals, but 2050 could still be achievable, provided actions are consistent and accelerated.
According to the 2026 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report, an estimated 935 million people in sub-Saharan Africa cannot afford a healthy diet. This stark reality underscores one of the region's greatest nutrition challenges: ensuring that nutritious foods are not only available, but also affordable for the people who need them most.
Addressing this challenge requires strong agrifood businesses capable of producing, processing and distributing nutritious foods at scale. This is precisely why the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) launched the Nutritious Foods Financing Facility (N3F).
Youth participation is increasingly recognised as essential for transforming food systems, yet many young people remain underrepresented in formal decision-making, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. In Bangladesh, recent policy momentum and growing youth mobilisation have created new spaces for engagement, yet how these developments translate into meaningful influence over planning and policy processes in practice remains unclear.
This qualitative case study explored how youth engage in Bangladesh's food system policy development through 27 semi-structured interviews with youth leaders and policymakers. Youth participants were purposively selected from GAIN's Food System Youth Leadership initiative while policymakers were selected based on their roles in nutrition, food systems policy, and youth development. Data were analysed thematically using hybrid deductiveinductive approach.
