In Latin America, the country of Guatemala suffers high child malnutrition rates. Jennifer Mizgata, a United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) officer in Washington DC, visited Guatemala and saw first-hand the suffering of children. Mizgata, in an account of her visit published in the Baltimore Sun, wrote:
“Henri is just 11, but already his prematurely wizened face is that of a grown-up - a casualty of a daily job breaking rocks in the sun. By contrast, his small body resembles that of the average American 8-year-old..... Yet thanks to an alternative school program and his own determination, Henri is able to study in the afternoon. In fact, he is the best math student in his class. ... Henri is kept out of traditional school by marginal school fees and his need to work to survive. While investing in education is critical, Guatemalans must first be able to eat. Without food, Henri and his peers can't focus on their education.”
School feeding is desperately needed in Guatemala. Priscila De Molina is a WFP program assistant in Guatemala and she recently discussed the details of school feeding in the country.
How many children are benefiting from the WFP school feeding programs within the country?
161,420 school children currently benefit from school feeding programs, implemented through both the Ministry of Education and through NGOs. The targeting of beneficiaries was based on the highest prevalence of chronic under-nutrition, as reported by the National Census of First Grade Schoolchildren (2001). The school feeding program reaches children in provinces where the under-nutrition rate is higher than 70 percent, as compared to the already startlingly high national average of 49.3 percent.
Discuss what effect the meals have on the children in terms of school attendance, performance, and nutrition.
The immediate effects of school feeding are reducing short-term hunger and steadily increasing attendance. Guatemala is currently working to achieve Goal 2 of the Millennium Development Goals, which is universal completion of primary education. In Guatemala, the WFP-supported school feeding program is providing micronutrient-fortified foods (enriched milk and fortified corn-soy blend) in view of micronutrient deficiencies and the prevalence of anemia. With the enriched milk and fortified corn-soy blend, the parent-teacher school feeding committees prepare a warm, porridge-like drink called 'atole'. ‘Atole’ is a traditional part of the Guatemalan diet and is offered to schoolchildren usually by mid-morning or mid-afternoon. Teachers report an improvement in the school performance of children after they drink the 'atole'.
What plans are there for making school meals available for all children?
In 2000, the Ministry of Education established a de-centralized system to transfer cash to school boards to purchase commodities in the local markets for the school feeding programs. With allocations of the national budget, the national school feeding program is reaching 2.1 million schoolchildren in 18,000 schools, which represents about 70 percent of total schools. The program is meant to have national coverage, but some schools are facing difficulties in establishing school boards entitled to cash transfers. Universal coverage is the goal of the Ministry of Education in the short run. WFP has attempted to close the gap in coverage, at least in the areas with the highest prevalence of chronic malnutrition.
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What about the thousands of kids who's families can't even afford to send them to school much less afford to buy them full meals?