Gender, food systems, and climate in the 2025 Nutrition for Growth commitments

There is a significant need for funders and policymakers to more systematically integrate gender and nutrition across sectors, especially within climate and food systems. In 2025, the Paris Nutrition for Growth (N4G) Summit included, for the first time, a dedicated thematic area on gender equality. This research report analyzes the integration of gender, food systems, and climate action within the 2025 N4G commitments. Of the 631 commitments analyzed, 69.7% were categorized as having "No indicated connection to gender." Among those with a specific gender focus (177/631, 28%), the vast majority (83.1%) were "Targeted," viewing women primarily as recipients. Within this group, 21.1% framed women's nutrition only in relation to their reproductive roles and for the benefit of children. Only 2.5% of all commitments were "Inclusive," recognizing women as agents of change, and 2.2% were "Transformative," addressing the root causes of inequality. While nearly two-thirds of all commitments (63.5%) were related to food systems, only 13.2% addressed climate, indicating poor integration of climate with nutrition policymaking. Further, 65.8% of commitments related to food systems and/or climate did not incorporate gender. However, commitments categorized as "Inclusive" or "Transformative" demonstrated strong integration with food systems approaches. To address gender inequality across nutrition, food systems, and climate action, N4G commitments must move beyond targeting women as beneficiaries and instead focus on entry points identified by this review: community, male, and private sector engagement, multi-sectoral actions across food, education, health, economic, WASH, and social protection systems, strengthening policy environments, data systems, and advocacy.