The Philippines, through the Department of Education (DepEd), has officially joined the Governance Committee of the School Meals Accelerator (SMA), following its participation in the inaugural meeting held in Rome, Italy.
The Philippines joins fellow new members Guatemala and the Kingdom of Lesotho in the milestone initiative.
The SMA is a global support mechanism designed to assist the more than 110 member countries of the School Meals Coalition in accelerating the implementation of their school feeding programs.
Its goal is to expand coverage and ensure that more children receive nutritious and quality meals in schools.
“Our participation in the SMA Governance Committee reflects the strong political commitment of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to address undernutrition and improve the well-being of our learners,” Education Secretary Sonny Angara said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Through this international collaboration, we are strengthening our capacity to deliver quality, nutritious meals that are essential to the health and academic success of our learners.”
The Governance Committee is composed of key founding members, including the Government of Germany, World Food Programme, Rockefeller Foundation, Novo Nordisk Foundation, and Global Partnership for Education, along with the Philippines, Guatemala, and the Kingdom of Lesotho.
The inaugural meeting, held March 26 and 27, focused on establishing the SMA’s governance structure, setting priorities, defining funding and support mechanisms, and developing a three-year work plan with corresponding authorizations.
As a member of the Governance Committee, the Philippines will not only take part in decision-making processes, but will also gain direct access to SMA’s support mechanisms.
The country has been identified as one of the five priority countries, alongside Indonesia, Guatemala, the Kingdom of Lesotho and Zambia.
One of the core strategies of SMA is dedicated to catalytic support in response to country priorities, which include some flexibility to respond to validated government demand as opportunities emerge during implementation.
Angara was represented by Roger Masapol, Assistant Secretary for Governance and Operations and the official in charge of the School-Based Feeding Program of DepEd.
The SMA support mechanism comes at a crucial time, aligning with President Marcos’ commitment to address hunger and malnutrition through a record PHP25.6 billion budget for the SBFP this year.
This historic allocation aims to provide nutritious meals to 4.63 million learners for 200 days to ensure they are healthy and ready to learn. (PNA)
