Kenya to Host Global Parliamentary Summit on Hunger and Malnutrition

Kenya is preparing to host the Third Global Parliamentary Summit on Hunger and Malnutrition in Nairobi next week. The two-day conference, set for Monday, November 16, and Tuesday, November 17, 2026, will gather parliamentarians and stakeholders to explore strategies for tackling food insecurity and malnutrition. Mandera West MP Adan Yusuf Haji, who presides over the Eastern Africa Parliamentary Alliance on Food Security and Nutrition (EAPA-FSN), announced that this summit will be the first held on African soil.

"We are delighted that the summit will be hosted on African soil and in Kenya, for that matter, for the first time," Haji remarked during a media breakfast at Parliament Buildings prior to the event.

Organized by the Parliament of Kenya with assistance from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Kenya, the summit marks Kenya as the third country to host the global gathering, following Spain in 2018 and Chile in 2023. Haji urged parliaments to boost funding for food security and nutrition initiatives, advocating for the promotion of indigenous foods and addressing the impacts of poor nutrition.

He emphasized that Kenya's primary objective is to ensure its citizens are adequately fed and have access to balanced diets, stating that a nation unable to feed its people cannot claim independence.

Haji cautioned that the global malnutrition crisis remains alarming, with 700 million people affected worldwide, and one in five Africans malnourished. He called for the adoption of traditional crops to address food security and nutritional challenges. Dr John Mutunga, who chairs the Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock, spoke at the same event, stressing the need for African parliaments to develop and implement effective frameworks to bolster food security and nutrition systems.

Mutunga highlighted that hunger and malnutrition are significant development issues demanding continuous focus and collaborative efforts. He also appealed to the media to offer unbiased coverage of food security issues, encouraging journalists to concentrate on solutions and the consequences of hunger on communities.