81321256-Food System Leadership Ecosystem Zambia (Trainee Program and Network): development, implementation and evaluation

Overcoming the hunger and food crisis as well as the climate crisis cannot be achieved without a transformation of agricultural and food systems and fundamental paradigm shifts. Through the United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS), many countries have developed national pathways for transforming their food systems, putting the issue firmly on the global agenda. There exists a fundamental acknowledgement of the necessity of transforming agricultural and food systems, but the realization is complex and influenced by diverse, pronounced and conflicting interests and values. The GIZ Global Project "Transformation of Food Systems" (TES) contributes to this by supporting "transformative initiatives" (partnerships) at local, national, regional and global level that actively promote the transformation of food systems. Transformative initiatives within TES are alliances of diverse stakeholders who jointly develop visions and solutions for the transformation of food systems. As potential change agents, intermediaries are accompanied and supported in tackling transformative changes in partnerships. The change agents and partnerships aim to achieve multidimensional, comprehensive and sustainable changes to contribute to sufficient and healthier food for all people at all times within planetary boundaries. The necessary negotiation processes are aimed at developing and testing transformative, context-specific solutions and establishing change in the wider social environment. Good governance for improved nutrition is promoted. The programme also places a special focus on collective learning and the sharing of experiences by establishing a learning network between global and national initiatives and beyond. Moreover, it aims at strengthening capacities, particularly in leadership, and transformative processes and concepts. Through collaboration with other actors, such as the Global Alliance for Nutrition (GAIN) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), TES creates synergies to achieve greater impact together. TES is part of the Special Initiative "Transformation of Agricultural and Food Systems" (SI AGER) of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
Food Systems can play a more powerful role than they do today to improve consumption of healthy and nutritious food, raise incomes, create inclusive opportunities, and strengthen environmental conditions. For that they need a cadre of passionate professional food system leaders who can see, make and deliver on the necessary hard choices to reshape current systems. By investing in transformational leadership, both across stakeholders and bureaucracies, planning capacities for sustainable food systems can be revitalized. By encouraging ownership of the local narratives and respecting realities, inclusive science-policy-society processes and partnerships to stimulate accountable leadership and responsive institutions can be encouraged. As a supportive measure besides a transformative initiative in Zambia that is already being supported by GIZ, a food system leadership ecosystem shall be developed. As a result, the leadership capacity and networks in Zambia shall be strengthened to enable the realization of the pathways and visions defined by the existing national entities, stakeholders and initiatives working towards a food systems transformation.