The treatment of severe acute malnutrition has long been hindered by challenges such as fragmented coordination, volatile funding, and weak national ownership, leaving millions of children without reliable access to ready-to-use therapeutic food. This report begins by investigating these long-standing challenges through industry research, stakeholder engagement, and review of recent developments. We then examine how new frameworks, particularly the Child Nutrition Fund (CNF), aim to address structural barriers by promoting domestic investment, regional production, and more strategic donor alignment. While the CNF represents a promising step forward, it also introduces new planning, budgeting, and coordination demands that many countries and partners are not yet equipped to meet. To explore these dynamics, we applied a modeling and visualization application developed by the MIT Humanitarian Supply Chain Lab in collaboration with UNICEF and the Nigeria Ministry of Health (MoH), to four scenario-based case studies. These case studies revealed how key decisions such as network design, supplier selection, and contingency planning can dramatically influence program outcomes. We find that modeling and visualization can help operationalize the CNF’s promise, but they must be accompanied by long-term investment, systems strengthening, and coordination across sectors. Together, these approaches offer a path toward more inclusive, accountable, and resilient nutrition strategies.
