A delegation from São Tomé and Príncipe is coming to Brazil from 5th to 9th August to learn more about the Brazilian National School Feeding Programme (PNAE). The visit is organised by the World Food Programme (WFP) Centre of Excellence against Hunger in Brazil, in collaboration with the Brazilian government, the Brazilian Agency for Cooperation (ABC) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the National Fund for the Development of Education (FNDE).
The main objectives of the visit include evaluating evidence on the relationship between school feeding and improved school enrolment rates and better performance in national exams, visiting and understanding Brazilian best practices in integrating family farming and using local products in the PNAE, learning how regional menus for school feeding are developed, and gaining insights into the sustainable financing of the programme.
The island nation, with a population of approximately 225,000, has had the National School Feeding and Health Programme (PNASE) since 2011, which serves nearly 49,000 children in pre-school and primary education. The programme had been implemented by the WFP in the country since 1976, and after a transition period (2012–2015), it has been funded and managed by the government of São Tomé and Príncipe.
The PNASE currently faces challenges such as programme sustainability, the high cost of local products compared to imported goods, and coordination among various sectors related to food, nutrition, and health.
São Tomé and Príncipe is also part of the Global School Feeding Coalition and has been presiding over the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) since 2023, a position it will hold for the next two years.
Visit to Brazil
The study visit by the São Tomé and Príncipe delegation will take place in the Brazilian capital, Brasília. The programme includes technical meetings, workshops, and field visits to an agroecological farm providing local products to schools, as well as to public schools participating in the PNAE in the region.
In addition to closely observing the Brazilian school feeding system, the delegation will visit the WFP Centre of Excellence office, the ABC headquarters, the FNDE, and the National Institute for Educational Studies and Research Anísio Teixeira (INEP). A visit to the Ministry of Education is also planned.
The delegation will include Isabel Maria Correia Viegas de Abreu, Minister of Education, Culture, and Sciences; Emanuel Montóia Gonçalves Afonso, Coordinator of the National School Feeding and Health Programme (PNASE); and Leon Victor Mushumba, WFP Country Office Programme and Policy Officer and Representative in São Tomé and Príncipe.