Brazil participated in the Academic Forum and International Stakeholder Seminar on Indonesia’s Free Nutritious Meals Programme (MBG), held on 6 and 7 August in the capital Jakarta.
With the aim of analysing the national context and discussing possible ways to strengthen school feeding in Indonesia, Brazil played a prominent role in the events, with the participation of the director of the WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger in Brazil, Daniel Balaban, and the coordinator of Food and Nutritional Security at the National Fund for Education Development (FNDE), Daniel Bandoni.
The Indonesian government seeks to universalise school feeding in the country through the MBG. In less than a year since its establishment, the programme has already invested 10 billion dollars, and its goal is to increase the number of students receiving school meals from 6 million to 80 million by the end of 2025.
Daniel Balaban highlighted the importance of Indonesia’s initiative: “The Indonesian government’s commitment has opened a unique opportunity to create a sustainable school feeding model in the country, based on evidence and international best practices, but adapted to the country’s reality. The WFP Centre of Excellence in Brazil is ready to support them in whatever way necessary.”
The Brazilian experience with the National School Feeding Programme (PNAE) was the subject of Daniel Bandoni’s presentation. “Brazil has a solid track record in public school feeding policies, with emphasis on intersectoral governance, the programme’s legal framework and local purchases from family farms”, he said.