A number of UN colleagues gathered in Bujumbura on 30 July 2018 to 1 August 2018, eager to view the preliminary findings from the UN Nutrition Inventory that was recently carried out in Burundi. The retreat set out to leverage these results, with a view to improving UN collaboration across planning, targeting, implementation and M&E. It was moderated by the REACH Facilitator in Chad, who was able to speak to how the exercise has spurred transformative change elsewhere.
Experience is demonstrating that the Inventory, a strategic exercise supported by the UN Network Secretariat, is a vehicle for expanding UN Network membership to other UN agencies, and thus further mobilizing the United Nations System for increased nutritional impact. This is not only a win for nutrition but also for sustainable development, understanding that nutrition is a key driver. Inspired by the initial findings, the Burundi Inventory prompted four other UN agencies – UNDP, UNFPA, UNHCR and UN WOMEN – to participate in the exercise. This has given rise to a second wave of data collection, which will integrate that from the additional UN agencies in order to obtain a more complete picture of UN nutrition support in Burundi. At the end of the retreat, three of them officially announced they will join the UN Network in-country, and the fourth is likely to follow suit.