Structure and governance
Leadership, management and oversight of the Child Nutrition Fund
UNICEF-led coordination
The CNF is not an independent entity or hosted fund – it is a UNICEF-led coordination mechanism comprised of various UNICEF programmes for financing. The CNF is managed by UNICEF through the CNF Management Unit.
Steering Committee
As described in the CNF Governance Basis, the Steering Committee serves as an advisory forum to discuss ways to scale up interventions for child undernutrition, maximizing the impact and cost-effectiveness of CNF investments. The Committee comprises representatives from key partners. These include:
Anna Hakobyan
Chief Impact Officer and Executive Director Nutrition, Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF)
Anna Hakobyan provides strategic leadership on CIFF’s impact and tech agenda, and oversees CIFF’s global strategy and portfolio on nutrition. Before joining CIFF in 2009, Anna worked in senior policy and programme roles at Transparency International, the World Bank, and Y Care International, amongst others – working across Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Anna has served on a number of Boards and has published work in areas of public health, nutrition, good governance, and data and tech.
Abhinav Verma
Senior Manager, Nutrition Financing and Partnerships, Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF)
Abhinav leads CIFF’s efforts to mobilize greater financial resources for high-impact nutrition interventions by building partnerships across governments, donors, and the private sector. Before joining CIFF, Abhinav served as the Asia Deputy for the Rockefeller Foundation, overseeing grant-making and policy engagements across the region, and led digital health transformation projects with the Indian government. Abhinav is a lawyer by training and holds an MBA from the University of Oxford.
Rahul Rawat
Deputy Director, Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, Gates Foundation
Rahul Rawat leads the Foundation’s portfolio and grant making on maternal, newborn and child nutrition. Prior to joining the Foundation in 2016, Rahul spent nine years at the International Food Policy Research Institute, most recently as a Senior Research Fellow based in Dakar, Senegal, where he led the Institute’s Africa strategy to generate evidence on the effectiveness of programme-based interventions to address maternal and child undernutrition. He has also worked extensively across South and Southeast Asia. Rahul has a PhD in International Nutrition from Cornell University and a Master of Health Science in Global Disease Epidemiology and Control from Johns Hopkins University.
Kedar Mankad
Senior Programme Officer, Global Policy and Advocacy, Gates Foundation
Kedar Mankad is a Senior Officer in the Global Policy and Advocacy Division of the Gates Foundation, where he has worked for the last nine years. In this role, he leads the cross-foundation nutrition advocacy strategy, within the Agricultural Development, Nutrition and Maternal Newborn Child Nutrition and Health teams. Prior to joining the Foundation, Kedar worked on policy and advocacy with the ONE Campaign and led research on policy responses to the environmental footprint of agricultural commodities. Kedar has an MA in International Relations from Yale University.
Nancy Belhocine
Deputy Director, Humanitarian Assistance Bureau, Global Affairs Canada
Nancy Belhocine is a Deputy Director in the Humanitarian Assistance Bureau at Global Affairs Canada, covering emergency food and nutrition assistance and the Latin America and the Caribbean region. Nancy has been working for the department since 2008 in different roles, including première secretaire (development) in Nicaragua (2017-2020) and South Sudan (2013-2014).
Angela Kiraly
Senior Policy Analyst, Global Affairs Canada
Angela Kiraly is a Senior Policy Analyst in the Humanitarian Assistance Bureau at Global Affairs Canada, where she has led on Canada’s nutrition in emergencies policy and programming since 2021. She is a career member of Canada’s public service, having worked for five federal departments since joining in 2009. Angela holds a Master of Arts in Conflict Studies from St Paul University, Ottawa.
Representative of the Bezos Family Office
Bezos Family Office
In March 2025, the Bezos Family announced an up to US$500 million 'Match Challenge' for the UNICEF-led Child Nutrition Fund to address global child and maternal undernutrition. A representative of the Bezos Family Office sits on the CNF Steering Committee
Joan Matji
Global Director, Child Nutrition and Development Practice, UNICEF
Joan Matji (PhD) is a national of South Africa. She has worked in nutrition for more than 20 years, holding several senior positions, including UNICEF Chief of Nutrition in Ethiopia from 2011 to 2014 and UNICEF Regional Nutrition Advisor in Nairobi from 2015 to 2020, providing technical support and oversight for 21 countries in Eastern and Southern Africa. She also served in a representational role on behalf of the Regional Director in the UNICEF Regional Hub for Botswana, Namibia, Eswatini and Lesotho (BNLE) from 2017–2018. Dr Matji also served as UNICEF Country Representative to Botswana and Representative to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) for five years. She holds an MSc from the University of London (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) and a PhD in Public Health Nutrition from the University of Pretoria.
Roland Kupka
Senior Advisor, Financing for Child Nutrition and Development, UNICEF
Roland Kupka leads the UNICEF‑led Child Nutrition Fund, driving global efforts to mobilize financing and scale high‑impact nutrition solutions for children and women in countries with the greatest needs. A German national, he began his career as a Research Scientist and Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Nutrition at Harvard University. Since joining UNICEF in 2008, Roland has advanced nutrition programming across West and Central Africa, East Asia and the Pacific, and served as Senior Nutrition Adviser at UNICEF Headquarters. He was UNICEF’s Interim Representative to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea from 2024 to 2025. Roland holds a Doctor of Science in Nutrition and Epidemiology from Harvard University.
Angela Spilsbury
Nutrition Policy Team Leader, UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO)
Angela Spilsbury is the Nutrition Policy Team Leader for the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. She holds a Master in Public Health and has 30 years of development experience across Africa, Asia and the Middle East. She has led policy and programmatic initiatives to address poverty and humanitarian crises, and promote maternal and child health, sexual and reproductive health and rights, nutrition, and government systems. More recently, she served as the UK’s Development Director in Jordan supporting its economic growth and refugee response.
Emma Massey
Nutrition Adviser, UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO)
Emma works as Nutrition Adviser for the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Her specialist areas include humanitarian and health and she leads on the UK’s policy on Child Wasting and Nutrition in Fragile and Conflict-Affected States. Emma is a paediatric nurse nutritionist with a MSc in Public Health for Development from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Prior to joining FCDO, Emma worked on nutrition and health programming for NGO’s such as Médecins Sans Frontières and International Medical Corps across contexts in Africa and the Middle East.
Dan Irvine
Global Director, Health and Nutrition, World Vision International
Dan Irvine is the Global Director, Health and Nutrition, for World Vison International, where he has served since 2007. He oversees a US$400 million annual portfolio of primary health care investments largely centred on health system strengthening, infectious disease management, nutrition, and mental health. Earlier in his career, Dan lived and worked in Africa for 15 years, where he managed aquaculture, conservation and HIV/AIDS programmes. He holds a BSc in Psychology, an MSc in Peace Operations, and a Certificate in Aquaculture.
Rachel Hickman
Senior Hunger, Nutrition and Livelihoods Policy and Advocacy Adviser, Save the Children
Rachel is the Senior Hunger, Nutrition and Livelihoods Policy and Advocacy Adviser at Save the Children UK. She holds a BA in Politics with Development Studies and has over a decade of experience in advocacy and policy, with a particular focus on child wasting. She co-chairs the Global Wasting Advocacy Coalition, sits on the Action Review Panel for the Child Wasting Task Force and supports a wasting research project in Kenya and Somalia. Her work also centres on improving nutrition financing, strengthening global coordination, and advancing accountability.
The CNF Steering Committee advises on:
Strategic Results Framework review
Resource mobilization strategy
Allocation criteria for investments
Public expenditure assessment criteria
Development of new windows or instruments
Results reporting