On Tuesday, June 22nd, an event marked the official launch of the cost-benefit analysis (CBA) report for the National School Feeding and Health Programme (PNASE) of São Tomé and Príncipe, produced  by the WFP Centre of Excellence Against Hunger in Brazil, in collaboration with the WFP office in São Tomé and Príncipe, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and the PNASE Coordination. Representatives of the country’s Ministries of Education and Higher Education, Agriculture and Finance, UN agencies, development partners, and civil society participated in the event held in São Tomé. Experts from the Centre of Excellence participated remotely through videoconference.

The cost-benefit study of PNASE is mainly focused on analysing the costs and potential benefits brought on by the programme. The recommendation to execute this type of analysis was made by the SABER exercise, an initiative to collect and share data on educational policies and institutions to support countries in strengthening education systems in a decentralized manner, back in 2016. The analysis is a relevant advocacy tool in favour of the programme, which faces challenges in securing funding, a common obstacle in several parts of the world. “By demonstrating the high returns of investment in school feeding, the cost-benefit analysis strengthens the defense of investing in the programme, which positively impacts the future lives of beneficiaries in terms of future productivity, health, and reduction of inequalities”, said Vinicius Limongi, a specialist at the WFP Centre of Excellence.

During the event, the PNASE Coordinator and the WFP Representative in São Tomé and Príncipe highlighted the challenges and impacts of the programme, which provides daily hot meals for more than 50,000 children in the country. Then, the Minister of Education and Higher Education, Julieta Izidro Rodrigues, emphasised the importance of the support the WFP received to develop the programme and the São Tomé government’s ambition to scale up school feeding.

“With the decisive participation of the government, we are already able to offer meals for preschool and basic education students, ensuring that children have access to healthy meals and energy for their development and learning. The cost-benefit analysis of PNASE is, for us, a representation of all the effort we have been making since 2012,” said the Minister. “São Tomé and Príncipe has been counting on essential help from development partners and intends to continue advancing to execute the programme through its own efforts, until it reaches all students in the country,” she added.

Vinicius Limongi, from the WFP Centre of Excellence, presented the report to the participants and painted a broad picture of the PNASE, the methodology used, the main results of the analysis and a series of recommendations for the programme based on its findings. “PNASE is one of the most advanced institutionally-designed programmes in the Global South. Fighting for funding and continuity is a constant effort, even in countries with more established programmes. This study supports this advocacy effort for investing and expanding the programme by highlighting the enormous opportunity for social and economic development it represents for the country,” said Vinicius Limongi.

The report is available in Portuguese and will soon be translated into English.

The document, produced in partnership with WFP Kenya and the Government of Kenya, details the country’s journey in developing its national school feeding programme and the role of the WFP Centre of Excellence in this process. Home-grown school meals represent the leading school-based programme in Kenya since 1980. Initially, 240,000 children in primary and pre-primary schools were covered by the programme, in arid and semi-arid areas. The introduction of Free Primary Education in January 2003 boosted school enrolment and, by 2007, School Meals reached more than 1.2 million school children. The programme has, therefore, become a reference and has inspired other developing countries, such as Namibia and Zambia.

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Country Cases – Togo

Togo’s collaboration with WFP CoE began in 2014, when a delegation from the country came to Brazil on a Study Visit, to learn about the Brazilian experience in home-grown school feeding. Since then, WFP CoE has continuously engaged with WFP Togo and the country’s government, dedicated to establishing the legal and normative bases that can guarantee the existence and guide the implementation of school feeding in Togo. Over the years, WFP CoE supported the development of the country’s National School Feeding Policy and the School Feeding Bill, while maintaining consistent engagement with and support to Togo’s government and WFP Country Office.

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Virtual Exchanges Publication Collection

Here are the latest publications produced by the WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger Brazil. The list includes papers on how countries are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic to keep school feeding programmes running, in addition to other publications such as Policy Briefs, Good Practices and manuals.

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Supporting the Development and Implemantation of Resource Mobilization Initiatives: The Gambia

A new document published by the WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger Brazil showcases the path that led to a successful case of project proposal preparation, from the initial call to the final approval of a USD 16 million grant. The process was initiated by the WFP country office in The Gambia in March 2019, when the Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme (GAFSP), a global fund financed by the G20 and managed by the World Bank, was launched. The GAFSP call aimed at providing resources to scale-up agricultural, food and nutrition security assistance to fragile and conflict-ridden countries.

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Implementing the Brazilian National School Feeding Programme During the COVID-19 Pandemic

With the suspension of the school calendar due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brazilian National School Feeding Programme (PNAE), has decided to distribute the food purchased for the programme to children’s parents and guardians in the form of food baskets – which the government is calling “kits”. The WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger Brazil has created a document that summarises the main recommendations for school feeding nutritionists and managers to organise the assemblage and distribution of these kits, as detailed by FNDE´s “Guidelines for the Execution of PNAE during the Emergency Situation arising from the COVID-19 Pandemic”.

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School feeding in times of COVID-19

With the advance of COVID-19 worldwide, thousands of schools have suspended their activities and around 368 million children no longer have access to school meals. The provision of meals in schools represents a stable and predictable supply of food to children, contributing to improve nutrition, health, and academic performance. In order to ensure the continuity of school meals initiatives, many governments are restructuring their programmes. The changes include the revision of benefits allocated per child/family and allow a shift from on-site eating modalities to the distribution of food baskets or direct cash transfers.

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School Feeding and Social Protection in Brazil with the COVID-19 Pandemic

Public and private schools suspended classes throughout Brazil as part of the Covid-19 prevention actions. This means that the nearly 40 million children and adolescents enrolled in basic education – and who also benefit from daily school meals – are no longer receiving this service. The publication presents the actions being taken in Brazilian states and municipalities to maintain school meals distribution during the crisis.

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Financing School Feeding

The World Food Programme (WFP) Centre of Excellence against Hunger launches today the second publication of the Good Practices Series, showing examples of successful financing tools for School Feeding Programmes in different countries with distinct contexts.

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School Feeding in Portuguese Speaking Countries

The Centre for Excellence against Hunger launched the first publication of the Good Practices Series. The series provides successful examples of school feeding programs in Portuguese-speaking countries. The document compiles processes, laws and strategies implemented in Cape Verde, Sao Tome and Principe, Brazil and Mozambique.

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