Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty faces uphill battle amid conflicts and aid cuts

Progress will depend on 'many circumstances beyond anyone's control', says senior official

The Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty is facing challenges to advance its goals a year since it was founded, as wars continue and aid budgets shrink, its support mechanism director has warned.

Renato Godinho, who is also a Brazilian diplomat, described a world that has become “more fearful” and “more selfish” as the number of crises rises.

The alliance was launched in November 2024 at the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Rio de Janeiro, following its establishment earlier that year under the initiative of host country Brazil. It currently brings together more than 200 members with the goal of accelerating progress on ending hunger, reducing poverty and tackling inequality worldwide, in line with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“It is truly a challenging situation. When the alliance was launched just one year ago, the world seemed different,” Mr Godinho told The National on the sidelines of the Second World Summit for Social Development in Doha.

“We are one year after that in much more conflict ... you also have budget cuts to international development assistance. We can see countries becoming more fearful, more selfish.”

This week, famine was confirmed in Sudan’s war-scarred city of El Fasher in North Darfur and the besieged town of Kadugli in South Kordofan, in a report by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification. Since April 2023, the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been locked in a war that regional and international mediation has failed to bring to an end. The war has killed tens of thousands and displaced nearly 13 million people.

The alliance also faces hurdles from sweeping cuts and freezes to foreign aid. Earlier this year, US President Donald Trump declared USAID – once the world’s leading donor of humanitarian assistance – a waste of money and dissolved it.

Several European countries have also announced significant cuts to foreign aid budgets, driven by economic pressures and changing government priorities.

“It is a call for multilateralism, joint action and concrete efforts on the ground,” said Mr Godinho. “If wars continue, there is nothing the alliance can do. But the hope is that if conditions start to improve, rebuilding can be done appropriately.

“We hope that we'll be able to pick up the pace, but of course, it'll depend on many circumstances beyond anyone's control.”

The alliance says it helps countries create plans for proven programmes and co-ordinates a number of partners to support these national priorities, rather than letting them compete for donor attention with separate proposals.

“The proper way to do it is to empower the country to have its own national programme that's embedded in its laws, so it can provide continuity,” said Mr Godinho.

Doha summit

The summit in Qatar’s capital, Doha, was convened to build on development goals established 30 years ago at the Copenhagen summit. The first World Summit for Social Development, held in 1995, marked a global milestone in establishing comprehensive social development as a key pillar of sustainable development worldwide.

World leaders have now adopted the Doha Political Declaration, which UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres described as a “booster shot for development” in the fight against deepening global inequality.

The declaration calls for commitments in several areas, including poverty eradication, access to “decent work”, social integration, gender equality and climate action. Senior officials gathered in Doha emphasised that social development is not only a moral imperative but also essential for peace, stability and sustainable growth.