Bill calls for free meals for state students

Manila: Lawmakers are proposing that the government provide free meals to state school pupils to encourage them to attend classes and enable them to absorb their lessons well.

“It is reported that there are many Filipino children [who] go to school with an empty stomach. This obviously compromises the learning of the children in the classroom,” Representative Sharon Garin of the farming sector partylist AAMBIS-OWA, said.

Garin is among three lawmakers pushing for the adoption of House Bill 5584 or the proposed Healthy Students Act of 2015, which aims to to provide free meals to students in the day-care centres, kindergarten, elementary and secondary state schools in the country.

Aside from Garin, the two other lawmakers pushing for the adoption of the free meals measure for the students are Rep. Rogelio Espina (Biliran) and Rep. Romero “Miro” Quimbo (2nd District, Marikina City).

The Healthy Students Act aims to put aside P50 billion (Dh4.14 billion) to fund a free meal and regular check-up programme for students enrolled in all state schools.

In comparison, the Philippines has allotted a P367.1 billion to education from the P2.606 trillion national budget in 2015.

Currently, although state schools from the day-care to secondary school provide free education, students bring or spend for their own meals.

Data from the United Nations World Food Programme says that some six million Filipino children suffer from severe malnutrition. The state Food Nutrition and Research Institute (FNRI) said that based on a study conducted in 2011, three out of 10 Filipino children aged six-10 years old are underweight.

“The number of Filipino children going to school with an empty stomach is alarming. This obviously compromises the learning of children in classrooms. This proposed measure aims to arrest this issue,” Garin said.

To address the issue of malnutrition, the government will feed schoolchildren balanced meals for free during school days from Mondays to Fridays.

Aside from meals, the students will also be given regular medical check-ups, vaccination, and vitamins supplements.

Alongside malnutrition, poverty affects conflict-rife areas and disaster-prone regions such as Mindanao and the Visayas, she said.

Espina said the programme could enhance enrolment and reduce absenteeism among Filipino students.

“School meals connect the community, as parents and teachers work hand in hand for the benefit of the children as well as [to] strengthen their social ties among the children themselves,” he said.

Quimbo pointed out the sense of urgency in enacting the free-meal measure into law.

“As the aim of the programme is to safeguard physical and intellectual development among Filipino students, the early enactment of this measure is earnestly sought,” Quimbo stressed.

The proposed Healthy Students Act would be implemented over five years,

In its first three years, the programme shall be implemented in the state schools of the top provinces where the poverty rates are the highest.