More Schools with More (Nutritious!) Food

The World Food Program (WFP) has made tremendous progress in healthier, more diverse meals in many African schools.

Since 2022, 48 out of 54 African countries have established school feeding policies that set guidelines and nutrition standards for young students. Studies reveal that nutritious school meals help both to reduce hunger and improve health.

More progress is still needed to ensure these programs reach the most rural areas. Currently, the WFP estimates that school feeding programs support 55 per cent of students in upper-middle-income countries but only 15 per cent of children in low-income countries. Nonetheless, WFP’s work positively affected the lives of 107 million children in 2022 alone through the expansion of national school feeding programs. What’s more, many students in the program are learning about “integrated food systems,” meaning that they receive more nutritious meals and are taught how to grow and harvest crops. More work must be done, but significant progress is being made in this part of the world to ensure nutrition for all.