Aiming for Nutritious Meals to be Available to All School-Aged Children Worldwide

School feeding programs have been in existence for years and adopted in various countries worldwide. In developed nations, their school feeding programs are universally available to every school-aged kid in schools in every state or region. And in low-income countries, their school feeding programs are targeted towards areas with food insecurities. They are essential in improving the nutrition status of school-aged kids who probably came to school on an empty stomach. Most of us have known what it means to go for a full day or probably days without a meal. School-aged kids cannot focus and concentrate on an empty stomach. Therefore, keeping school children fed one or several healthy meals at a time is of great urgency.

The Covid-19 pandemic led to 370 million children not having school meals available due to the closure of schools worldwide [1]. You can imagine how stoked I was to learn about the new initiative called the School Meals Coalition launched on November 16th, 2021 by several governments and partner organizations from various countries worldwide [2]. The goal and objective of this initiative are to improve, restore national sustainable school food programs and make sure every child has access to a healthy and nutritious meal in school by 2030 [2].

Food is essential for our health and development. Yet, nutrition seems to be the least invested component in emergency response. What kid will want to miss school knowing that nutritious meals will be available at school? None. Moreover, some school feeding programs include take-home rations for children attending school. Studies have shown that school feeding programs improve school enrollments, fight hunger and prevent malnutrition.

Every country that has signed on and committed to this initiative will tailor its own national school feeding program to its context. These countries will recruit local small farm holders and markets to supply locally produced food products. At the central kitchen, the products will be ready for distribution. These programs are impactful on the kids and the local economy. It also provides a source of income for the cooks, small farm holders, and markets recruited to assist the program.

Expansion of these school feeding programs to every school worldwide is essential in making sure that every child, irrespective of background and financial status have the opportunity to grow, learn, and thrive. Sustainability and self-reliance are critical elements in ensuring that these programs remain efficient.

Improving access to healthy meals will transform a lot of lives immensely.

References

1. Makiwa, H. (2021). School meals coalition: Link-up aims to transform the lives of children | World Food Programme. Retrieved 5 December 2021, from https://www.wfp.org/stories/un-food-systems-pre-summit-rome-school-meals-coalition

2. A healthy meal every day for every child. (2021). Retrieved 5 December 2021, from https://schoolmealscoalition.org/

Image Credit: World Bank Group