Schoolchildren enjoy lunch provided through the school meals programme. - Photo: Vientiane Times file
VIENTIANE: The German government has supported the school meal programme, which amounts to about US$9.5 million over five years.
Target areas are 200 schools in the three southern provinces of Saravan, Xekong and Attapeu, benefitting 22,000 children.
The project is implemented under the leadership of the Inclusive Education Development Centre of the Ministry of Education and Sports.
During the five years of implementation, the project will further strengthen government capacities on all levels, and will formulate a sustainable financing strategy for school meals.
A new agreement signed by the Ministry of Education and Sports on Tuesday (July 2) formalises support from the Federal Republic of Germany to Laos’ largest social safety net in the form of school meals.
Support to local agriculture for a steady supply of food to schools, driven by a partnership with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), aims to create a positive cycle of rural poverty reduction centred around local schools.
Since the early 2000s, the Lao government has worked to improve primary school enrolment and retention rates with the help of food, a great incentive for education for many rural families.
School meals programmes are currently operating in about 25 percent of primary schools around the country, benefitting close to 250,000 children, but external support is needed to sustain the programmes in many areas.
Deputy Minister of Education and Sports Dr Sourioudong Sundara said there are many points in favour of school meals, to which the government attaches great importance.
The ministry’s Education and Sports Sector Development Plan for 2021-2025 acknowledges the key role that school meals play in reducing inequalities in education by boosting enrolment, attendance, and learning outcomes.
The newly provided support aims to build a supply system linking local farmers to school meals to ensure a steady supply of fresh ingredients for school meals that benefit children from a nutritional and educational standpoint, and also farmers by creating economic opportunities.
This is expected to form a mutually reinforcing cycle that, together with budgetary support from the government and rice contributions from families, will create stable, durable and locally managed school meals programmes.
The project also has a strong gender component that aims to empower women.
In addition, it promotes climate-smart practices among smallholder farmers and equips schools with energy-efficient cooking solutions.
German Ambassador to Laos Annette Knobloch said the Accelerating School Meals in Laos project, which was designed by the World Food Programme to support girls and young women in particular, fits perfectly into these guidelines.
WFP Country Director and Representative, Jacqueline de Groot, said Germany’s generous support is framed by WFP’s global efforts to transform food systems and strengthen human capital in countries such as Laos.
The programme also aims to improve health and nutrition awareness for students in rural schools, so that the next generation can make choices that equip them for a happy and productive future, she added. - Vientiane Times/ANN
