African Leaders Call for Nutrition Sovereignty at UN General Assembly

African leaders and global partners convened the high-level event Our Children Cannot Wait: Leadership for Child Survival and Nutrition during the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly. Organized by King Letsie III of Lesotho, the Government of Canada, and Nutrition International, the gathering addressed projections that 18 million children in Africa could die from preventable causes over the next five years.

The participants released the Child Survival Principles and Call to Action, which advocates for nutrition sovereignty. This framework urges African nations to prioritize child survival through domestic financing and country-led plans to reduce dependence on donor priorities. King Letsie III argued that true sovereignty is impossible while children depend on outside help for survival.

President William Ruto of Kenya emphasized the need to strengthen human capital and utilize county-led action plans, while African Union Commissioner Amma Twum-Amoah pledged the union's support for member states to build resilient systems. Canada's Secretary of State for International Development, Randeep Sarai, affirmed Canada's commitment to working with African governments and partners to advance these goals.

The group intends to reconvene at the Doha Forum in December to translate these principles into concrete commitments.