Caloocan to feed 18,400 daycare, preschool pupils

MANILA, Philippines - The Caloocan City government’s social welfare department is preparing to feed more than 18,400 preschool and daycare pupils daily this year, an official said yesterday.

Mayor Enrico Echiverri said the city government, in cooperation with the Department of Social Welfare and Development, fed 18,463 pupils from the city’s 204 public daycare centers last schoolyear.

He said the feeding program, which starts next month, will include preschool students since the Department of Education (DepEd) now requires five-year-old children to enroll in kindergarten under its K+12 program.

Echiverri said despite common problems encountered during the opening of classes such as the lack of classrooms and teachers, the DepEd assured close cooperation with the city government to “settle” the needs of pupils.

“It’s a good feeling making poor kids happy by providing them with nutritious food, which would make them more eager to go to school,” he said.