Global Events & Key Moments

Child Nutrition at the Paris Peace Forum 2026

10–11 Nov 2026
A child enjoying her school meal in a school in Ukraine
Ukraine. School Feeding in Europian Lyceum Lubny, Poltava

Children First: A Global Commitment to Child Wellbeing

At the Paris Peace Forum’s Child Summit, members and partners of the School Meals Coalition highlighted a clear message: investing in children is an investment in peace and our shared future. The Summit also reinforced the importance of ensuring that young people have a meaningful voice in shaping the Coalition’s future priorities. This reflects the direction set by the Coalition’s co-chairs in their Outcome Statement from the Third Ministerial Task Force Meeting in Rome, which identified youth engagement as an important priority for the years ahead. 

“We work with the government-led School Meals Coalition, launched in 2021 with Finland and the World Food Programme. We want every child in the world to have at least one quality meal per day. The results are there -  466 million children today get school meals through these local programmes. So, this nutrition agenda is absolutely key.” 

Emmanuel Macron, President, French Republic 
speaking at the Paris Peace Forum Child Summit 2026

Unlocking Investment in Resilient School Meals Value Chains


A high-level roundtable, co-hosted by France and The Rockefeller Foundation, in partnership with the School Meals Coalition, brought together governments, international financing institutions and partners to explore how the predictable purchasing power of school meal programmes can unlock investment in resilient local food systems. High-level participants included Éléonore Caroit, France’s Minister Delegate for Francophonie and International Partnerships; Carlos Márcio Bicalho Cozendey, Secretary of Multilateral Political Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Brazil; Palamagamba Kabudi, Minister of State, Prime Minister’s Office, Tanzania; Álvaro Lario, President of IFAD; and Carl Skau, WFP Deputy Executive Director, alongside representatives from the World Bank, the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty and other major partners. The discussion focused on the infrastructure behind the plate, from local production and aggregation to storage, processing and logistics, and how greater investment can translate into better nutrition for children, stronger markets and opportunities for farmers, and more resilient local supply chains. The roundtable also explored how governments, financing institutions and partners can work together to turn these opportunities into concrete, investable country pathways, mobilizing political and financial commitments behind nationally led school meal programmes.

Watch the session
Call to Action: Unlocking Investment for Resilient School Meals


School meals are not simply a social intervention. They are a strategic investment in children, peace and our shared future. At the Child Summit at the Paris Peace Forum, France, as co-chair of the School Meals Coalition, alongside Brazil, Finland and Kenya, launched the Unlocking Investment for Resilient School Meals Call to Action. The Call to Action seeks to mobilize greater investment and more predictable resources, close financing gaps for resilient, nationally owned school meal programmes, and advance innovative financing solutions aligned with country priorities. It highlights the opportunity for governments, donors, UN agencies, financial institutions and other partners to mobilize expertise and predictable resources, strengthen resilient food systems and accelerate sustainable school meal programmes that respond to national priorities.

This Call to Action builds on the 2027-2028 School Meals Coalition priorities agreed at last month’s Coalition Task Force Ministerial meeting. 

Call to Action: Unlocking Investment for Resilient School Meals
Putting Children First: Governments Advance the Case for Nutritious School Meals


 The Children First Declaration, launched at the Child Summit at the Paris Peace Forum, reinforces the importance of government leadership in advancing children’s health, nutrition, learning and wellbeing. It highlights the role of national priorities, public budgets and financing in delivering better outcomes for children, and identifies nutritious and healthy school meals as a powerful way to address malnutrition. 

Read the Children First Declaration

Watch the conversation

What does it take to put children first? Watch the Paris Peace Forum’s Child Summit discussion on advancing child wellbeing, including the vital role of nutrition and school meals in giving every child the opportunity to thrive.