“The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, or BMZ, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, together with German and European businesses, are pooling investments worth €80 million ($108 million) to reduce malnutrition around the world,” Devex reports. “BMZ has also initiated a process to craft guidelines for cooperation in the agriculture and food sectors, in collaboration with the private sector, civil society groups and partner organizations,” the news service adds.

According to German Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development Dirk Niebel, “the projects form part of Germany’s commitment to the G-8 New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition and the global Scaling Up Nutrition initiative,” Devex writes (Villarino, 1/30). “Projects include a drive to improve rice production in southeast Asia, and to make cashew nut production in west Africa more efficient,” the Associated Press notes, adding, “Companies involved include Bayer AG’s crop science unit and chemical maker BASF SE” (1/29).