The sudden onset of COVID-19 in 2020 delivered blows to many international, national, and subnational structures that supported good nutrition. While the impact of the pandemic continues to resonate, it also provides an opportunity to focus on lessons learned and prepare for future shocks to global systems, especially those that impact nutrition.

In the early days of the pandemic, representatives from USAID, UNICEF, WHO, and USAID Advancing Nutrition formed the Agile Core Team for Nutrition Monitoring (ACT-NM) to collaborate on COVID-19- and nutrition-related data collection. In July 2022, ACT-NM launched a new comprehensive nutrition and COVID-19 Analytical Framework that maps pathways connecting the secondary impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on nutrition outcomes in both children and adults. This framework supports an integrated, systems approach to understanding nutrition in the context of   COVID-19 and future pandemics/crises.

The newly-launched framework is referenced in the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) 2022. SOFI 2022 raises the alarm on major drivers of food insecurity and malnutrition that are intensifying, many of which are tied to global shocks exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic (conflict, climate change, economic shocks, etc.). Possible country case-study pathways built using the framework are also highlighted in the report, tracking multiple determinants and factors that may impact wasting and overweight among children under five years of age in Chad and Peru, respectively.

The interactive analytical framework bridges multiple sectors, linking the overarching categories of food, health, social protection, education, water, and sanitation to outcomes and impacts of COVID-19 on nutrition. For policymakers and program staff, this tool is a powerful and adaptable means to strengthen nutrition in the wake of COVID-19 and future shocks referenced in the 2022 SOFI Report. Learn more and explore the framework.