affects every country in the world. Globally, 149 million children under age 5 — nearly one in four — are stunted, more than 49 million suffer from wasting and more than 40 million are overweight. By 2025, researchers warn, an astonishing 70 million children around the world will be obese.
“Far too many children are not getting the nutrition they need to grow well. If children don’t get the right nutrients, their bodies and brains cannot be expected to perform well —at school, in sports and as they grow.”"Far too many children are not getting the nutrition they need to grow well," says the Portland Trail Blazers power forward and center.
“I first got involved with UNICEF in 2003 when I realized that my success as a basketball player could be beneficial in ways that I didn’t imagine before and that I could channel that success towards the benefit of children and raising awareness for children around the world.” UNICEF Global Champion for Nutrition and Zero Childhood Obesity Pau Gasol plays with Hussein, an 11-year-old Syrian refugee, on a field visit to an informal settlement in Minyara, Lebanon in 2016."The burden of child malnutrition around the world is unacceptably high," says UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore."We are delighted to welcome Pau to UNICEF to help shine a light on this invisible emergency and ensure all children realize their right to survival and development.