In our efforts to create a world where the opportunities for economic growth reach everyone, schools play a very significant role. Schools are where we shape future political leaders, scientists, economists, artists and thinkers. Schools are where we nurture dreams and aspirations.
Schools are where we lay the foundation for future economic growth and human capital.
Time and time again, our experiences show that health and education are two sides of the same coin, and investing in one requires simultaneous investment in the other. While building human capital depends on quality education, good health and nutrition are also required for children and adolescents to be able to participate and learn in school. When we improve the health and nutrition of schoolchildren, we transform the rest of their lives. Children who are well-nourished learn more, and subsequently earn more and are more productive as adults. That transformation carries through to the next generation with the improved health of their own children, creating a long-term cycle of economic growth and progress.
This is why most countries have established school feeding programmes to provide a safety net for vulnerable families, increase their food security and boost their children’s educational and health outcomes. However, in many low-income countries, national school feeding programmes remain incipient.