Launching the GFF x CIVIC ALIGN Project
Adolescents continue to face unequal access to high-quality health and nutrition services, while promising community-led solutions too often remain small-scale or disconnected from public systems.
ALIGN works to change this by supporting civil society and youth-led organizations to strengthen, adapt, and scale proven innovations so they can reach more adolescents and contribute to lasting systems change.
The World Bank Group’s GFF × CIVIC Platform, a joint initiative of the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and Adolescents (GFF) and CIVIC: The Civil Society and Social Innovation Alliance, is addressing these challenges through its second pillar, ALIGN - Advancing Local Innovations for Adolescent Health & Nutrition through Governance and Networks – that is led by Action Against Hunger (AAH/ACF), in partnership with the Emergency Nutrition Network (ENN) and The Youth Café (TYC).
Why It Matters
Effective solutions already exist, but too many remain limited to small-scale pilots and do not progress into broader programs or national health systems. Weak policy engagement, limited domestic financing, gaps in data and evidence, and the continued marginalization of underserved adolescents can make it difficult for promising approaches to move from local innovation to sustainable impact.
What is keeping adolescents benefiting from proven solutions?
Access Gaps
Adolescents in priority countries lack equitable access to quality, community-based health and nutrition services.
Lack of Scale
Proven, effective innovations remain in small-scale pilots and are never integrated into national health systems.
Under-Representation
CSOs and Youth-Led Organizations are under-resourced in shaping and scaling these services.
Systemic Barriers
Weak policy engagement limited domestic financing, poor data systems, and the marginalization of underserved adolescents.
ALIGN wil implement the following activities:
Sub
Granting
To CSOs and YLOs to adapt and expand proven innovations, youth-groups' initiatives, digital health platforms and more.
Capacity
Building
Through organizational assessments plus tailored technical assistance in financial management, monitoring and policy dialogue.
Youth
Engagement
Supporting accountability mechanisms such as youth councils and community scorecards, co-designed with governments, so young people’s voices are built into service delivery.
The Objective
The ALIGN project aims to improve adolescents’ access, equity, and health and nutrition outcomes by supporting civil society and youth-led organizations to expand proven community-based solutions, strengthen meaningful youth participation, and create pathways for effective innovations to be integrated and scaled through national systems.
1
Access Gaps
Reach adolescents where they are.
Expand quality, community-based health and nutrition services across the 12 priority countries.
2
Under-represenation
Put CSOs and YLOs in the lead.
Direct sub-grants. Resource local and youth-led organizations to design and deliver.
3
Lack of Scale
Move from pilot to national system
Integrate proven innovations into national policies, plans and budgets.
4
Systemic Barriers
Strengthen policy, financing, data.
Build evidence and accountability so gains outlive the grant.
Cote d’Ivoire
Ethiopia
Madagascar
Mauritania
Niger
Nigeria
Senegal
Somalia
Tanzania
Uganda
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Global launch of the GFF x CIVIC ALIGN Project
On October 6, thousands of participants from different countries joined us to learn more about ALIGN, the second pillar of the GFF × CIVIC Platform, and its mission to strengthen civil society and youth engagement around adolescent health and nutrition across 12 GFF partner countries in Africa. ALIGN will be implemented over an 18-month period.
Thank you to everyone who joined the conversation and helped make the launch a success.
Questions or Concerns?
The ALIGN Consortium is committed to equitable engagement with communities. If you have any questions or concerns, please email alignacf@actionagainsthunger.org.