CEBU, Philippines - Some 780 undernourished pupils from five selected public elementary schools across the country, including Subangdaku Elementary School in Mandaue City, are set to benefit from a supplemental feeding and nutrition program organized by the Department of Education and condiments manufacturer Nutri-Asia, Inc.
In a statement, Education Secretary Armin Luistro said the feeding program offered by Nutri-Asia would result to improved school attendance and better school performance for students who often go to school on an empty stomach.
Luistro said there is a direct correlation between learning and nutrition, as evidenced by many studies and actual situations observed in public schools.
Students who are poorly nourished have a hard time focusing on the lesson, which eventually resorts to absenteeism and dropping out of the rolls.
Aside from Subangdaku Elementary School, the other program beneficiaries are the Bagong Ilog Elementary School in Bagong Ilog, Pasig City; Banay-banay Elementary School in Cabuyao, Laguna; Lias Elementary School in Marilao, Bulacan; and Quimpo Elementary School in Davao City.
The supplemental feeding and nutrition program will be implemented within six consecutive months.
The Nutri-Asia Gabay Kalusugan feeding and nutrition program falls under the Adopt-a-School Program of DepEd that enjoins the private sector to help fill the gaps in education resources.
More than P10 billion worth of private sector assistance have been generated for the country’s 44,000 public school and high school through the Adopt-A-School Program since it was re-launched in mid 2006. – THE FREEMAN