On May 24th the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) released its “State of School Feeding Worldwide” report. The report discusses the importance of providing school meals to children and stresses that more and expanded programs are needed.
Drawing on research from case studies and surveys, the WFP estimates that 368 million children around the world receive at least one meal at school each day. Almost every country has some kind of school feeding program, however children in higher income countries have greater access to school meals than children in developing countries.
Though students in developed countries have greater access, children in the developing world have greater need for the school meals, says the WFP. In many lower income countries the school meal program functions as a social safety net, with governments expanding the program as needed in response to economic crisis, natural disasters, and regional conflict.
Additionally, the WFP states that free school lunches act as “magnet to get children into the classroom.” Providing the lunches relieves a financial burden on poor families, and more children attend and stay in school longer, according to the report. This effect is particularly significant for girls.
Receiving adequate nutrition at school also improves a child’s ability to focus and learn. Researchers in rural Senegal discovered that children who received free school lunches were better able to memorize lessons, and had higher standardized test scores in French and math compared to those who did not receive the lunches.
Based on these findings, the WFP recommends the expansion of school meal programs, particularly in developing countries. Cost, however, is the main deterrent for governments, who fund most of the programs.
Daniel Balaban, of the WFP’s Centre of Excellence Against Hunger in Brazil, recommends a shift in the mindset of how funders view school meal programs. As school meals lead to healthier, better-educated adults, he says that the programs are “not an expenditure, they’re an investment.”
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