World Vision School Meals Report Card #1

Andrea Galante considers what the latest global survey of school meal programmes means for ensuring children's present and future nutrition and success.

This article illustrates the celebration of Africa School Feeding Day in Gemena, where World Vision implements its development programme. Together with community members, children, parents, and local authorities, World Vision raised awareness of the importance of school meals, which directly impact school performance, reducing absenteeism and combating hunger and malnutrition. All the participants in this activity promised to advocate and mobilise in favour of school meals.

In Pemba District, Zambia, last year’s severe drought left many families struggling to find food. Parents watched helplessly as their children went to school hungry, too weak to concentrate in class. Some children even stopped attending school because they had no energy to walk the long distances on empty stomachs.

The importance of vulnerability analysis goes far beyond targeting. It is a prerequisite for good needs assessment, for the design of interventions, for ensuring an inclusive response and for accountability.