Three questions to Axel van Trotsenburg, Senior Managing Director, World Bank

Interview with Axel van Trotsenburg, Senior Managing Director, World Bank, in charge of Development Policies and Partnerships

Axel van Trotsenburg, Senior Managing Director, World Bank, in charge of Development Policies and Partnerships.  :  Malnutrition is a major, yet often neglected, development challenge of our time. The consequences of failing to act are significant, undermining productivity, burdening healthcare systems, and trapping entire generations in poverty.

The good news is that we know what works to save lives. Our data shows that by scaling up high-impact nutrition interventions and access to healthy food, we can prevent 6.2 million child deaths and nearly 1 million stillbirths over the next decade.

The economic argument for taking action is equally strong. Every dollar invested in combating malnutrition yields a $23 return because of improved health outcomes and increased productivity.

Scaling up nutrition programs could generate significant economic gains, unlocking opportunities for education, workforce participation, and long-term prosperity. This is why the World Bank Group is committed to the nutrition agenda, as it not only improves lives but directly impacts job creation and economic growth.

Axel van Trotsenburg : Malnutrition is driven by multiple factors and hence requires a multi-sector response. Successful countries have been able to leverage action across sectors to improve nutrition outcomes. This includes delivering nutrition services within essential health care packages and integrating nutrition actions across sectors such as social protection, agriculture and education.

For instance, in Haiti, nearly half the population is facing hunger. In response, the Government together with the World Bank, the World Food Programme and local NGOs, are joining forces to deliver immediate relief and build long-term resilience. Together, we are providing cash transfers to 22,000 vulnerable households and over 10 million school meals. At the same time, investments in small-scale farmers aim to strengthen local food systems and lay the foundation for a more food-secure future.

In Nigeria a World Bank-supported project has provided more than 13 million women, adolescent girls, and children under the age of five with quality, cost-effective nutrition services over the past five years. Indonesia’s initiative to combat stunting combined nutrition services with early childhood education, clean water, and social assistance. As a result, stunting rates dropped from 31% to 22% between 2018 and 2023, helping over 20 million children escape this curse.

Given fiscal constraints and the shifting landscape for development assistance, both optimizing how sector investments deliver better nutrition, as outlined above, and maximizing innovative financing sources are critical.

Actions such as repurposing agrifood subsidies for healthy diets, and taxing unhealthy foods to shift dietary behaviors, as well as innovative co-investment models and partnerships are also invaluable in driving greater progress..

Axel van Trotsenburg : 

As a global leader in nutrition, the World Bank is strongly committed to integrating nutrition across its public and private investments.

Cost-effective nutrition interventions are also an important element of our efforts to help countries deliver quality, affordable health services to 1.5 billion people by 2030..

At the Summit, we reaffirmed our strong commitment: The World Bank Group will spend at least $5 billion in nutrition related activities in the next 5 year, led by country demand and availability of financing, including continued donor support to IDA.

NB : The opinions expressed in this interview do not necessarily reflect the positions of Focus 2030.