FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
) 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
Third Regular Session 
) 
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SEN~F77 
S.No. __ _ 
Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
EXPLANA TORY NOTE 
The Constitution, Aliicle II, Section 13 provides: 
The State recognizes the vital role of the youth in nation-building and shall 
promote and protect their physical, moral, spiritual, intellectual, and social well-
being. It shall inculcate in the youth patriotism and nationalism, and encourage 
their involvement in public and civic affairs. 
Article XIV, Section 1 provides: 
The State shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality 
education at all levels and shall take appropriate steps to make such education 
accessible to all. 
In 1997, the Department of Education launched a Breakfast Feeding Program (BFP) to 
address the "short-term-hunger syndrome" among public elementary school children. Short term 
hunger is a condition experienced by children who do not eat breakfast and/or walk long 
distances to reach school, resulting to non-attendance or non-attentiveness in class. The program 
evolved from just addressing sholi-tenn hunger to addressing the more serious problem of 
undernutrition in schools. However, the BFP is being implemented only for a limited duration 
and in select public schools with high prevalence of malnutrition. 
According to the 2003 National Nutrition Survey of the Food and Nutrition Research 
Institute (FNRI), among children 0-5 years old, 27.6% or over three million are underweight, and 
30.4% or over 3.5 million are short, and 5.5% are thin. Among children aged 6 to 10 years old, 
26.7% are underweight and 36.5% are short. Shortness in children of this age range is likely the 
result of chronic undernutrition, while thinness is an indication of acute or current undernutrition. 
The FNRI states that the country's progress towards achieving the Millennium Development 
Goal of reducing undernutrition in children by 50% in 2015 is behind schedule. 
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This bill seeks to institutionalize the breakfast feeding program of the Department of 
Education in all public day care centers, preschools, and elementary schools throughout the 
country. A breakfast feeding program is an important nutrition intervention to address 
undernutrition among children, improve school attendance, and help school children attain their 
highest academic performance level. 
This is the Senate counterpart bill of House Bill No. 27 filed by Rep. Rachel Marguerite 
B. Del Mar. 
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1PKIAM DEFEi'J;')uR SAN"TAf!v 
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FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
) 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
Third Regular Session 
) 
SENATE 
S. No. 3277 
Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
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AN ACT 
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PROVIDING FOR A BREAKFAST FEEDING PROGRAM FOR SCHOOL CHILDREN IN 
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PUBLIC DAY CARE CENTERS, PRESCHOOLS, AND ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS 
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THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
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SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Breakfast Feeding Program 
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for Public School Children Act." 
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SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to promote the physical, 
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moral, spiritual, intellectual, and social well-being of the youth. It is also the policy of the State 
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to promote quality education at all levels of the educational system. Towards this end, the 
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Government shall address the problem of malnutrition and undernutrition among children, and 
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provide the conditions to enhance the learning process in public day care centers, preschools, and 
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elementary schools for school children to attain their highest academic performance level. 
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SECTION 3. Breakfast Feeding Program. - A breakfast feeding program shall be 
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mandatory in all public day care centers, preschools, and elementary schools. This breakfast 
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feeding program shall be administered by the Secretary of Education. 
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School breakfasts shall be made available free of charge to school children in all public 
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day care centers, preschool, and elementary schools. Feeding shall be done in the morning, 
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preferably before the start of classes. 
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School breakfasts must meet the applicable recommendations of the Food and Nutrition 
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Research Institute (FNRI). Further, school breakfasts must provide at least one-fourth of the 
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Recommended Dietary Allowance for protein, calcium, iron, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and 
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calories. The decisions about what specific food to serve and how they are prepared shall he 
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made by the school authorities, based on guidelines to be issued by the Secretary of Education. 
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SECTION 4. Technical Training and Assistance. - The Secretary of Education, in 
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consultation with the Secretary of Health, the FNRI, and the Technical Education and Skills 
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Development Authority (TESDA), shall develop a progran1 to provide the food service personnel 
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of public day care centers, preschools, and elementary schools with technical training and 
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assistance to prepare healthy meals. 
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SECTION 5. Implementing Rules and Regulations. -Within ninety (90) days from the 
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approval of this Act, the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the Secretary of Health, the 
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Secretary of Social Welfare and Development, the FNRI, the TESDA, and other appropriate 
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government agencies, shall promulgate the rules and regulations to implement the provisions of 
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this Act. Such rules and regulations shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in a 
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newspaper of general circulation. 
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SECTION 6. Appropriations. -
To carry out the provisions of this Act, such amount as 
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may be necessary is hereby authorized to be appropriated from the National Treasury. 
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Thereafter, such amount necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act shall be included in the 
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annual appropriation of the Department of Education. 
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SECTION 7. Separability Clause. - If any provision, or pali hereof, is held invalid or 
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unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall remain 
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valid and subsisting. 
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SECTION 8. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance, executive 
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order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to or inconsistent 
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with, the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed, modified, or amended accordingly. 
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SECTION 9. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
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publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved, 
Oab 
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