DSi. WF REPRESENT ATES
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Republic of the Philippines STE: 16 We 2016

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES — at
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Quezon City :
17% CONGRESS BY: R \ |
First Regular Session z |

229
House Bill No. 28

Introduced by Representative Wes Gatchalian

EPLANATORY NOTE

More than a hundred years ago our national hero Dr. Jose Rizal uttered the
famous words that to this day echoes true in the consciousness of our nation -"Ang
Kabataan ang Pag-asa ng Bayan.” This sentiment is echoed by the letters of our
constitution, the document which is the embodiment of our people’s collective spirit.
There is therefore an irresistible mandate to the state to provide and ensure that the
children in our society are provided all that they need in order to fulfill the hopes
placed by generations gone by on their fragile shoulders. This bill proposes to
provide the nutritional needs of children in elementary.

Hunger hampers a child’s progress in his education during the critical
formative years of his growth. Despite the existing consider the following facts:
+ 66 million primary-age children in the developing world go to class hungry.
+ In the Philippines, due to hunger, 8.6 percent of school-aged children
between the ages of 5-19 years old are wasted, indicating that they suffer from acute
malnutrition .
. According to the Department of Education (DepEd), for the 2012-2013
academic year, 1,918,464 public elementary school children were wasted or
severely wasted.

‘These statistics show that we, as a Nation, have failed to satisfy the adequate
nutritional needs of today's children. The basic right of a child to proper care and
nutrition as provided for in our Constitution has largely gone ignored in the case of
at least one million school children.

It is with these alarming facts that this legislation, otherwise known as the
Nutri-Skwela Act of 2016, is brought before you. It aims to address the issue of
eradicating hunger and malnutrition amongst our young scholars by providing them

1 District 9f Valenzuela


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City
17% CONGRESS
First Regular Session

2990

House Bill No.

Introduced by Representative Wes Gatchalian

AN ACT
ESTABLISHING THE PHILIPPINE BASIC EDUCATION NUTRITION AND
PERFORMANCE ACCELERATION PROGRAM, APPROPRIATING FUNDS
THEREFOR,
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1, Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Nutri-Skwela Act of
2016".

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State shall protect and promote the right of
every Filipino child to a nurturing and fulfilling experience in the basic education
system. For this purpose, the State shall dedicate significant resources to the
strengthening of the capacities of children to perform well and succeed in school.
Pursuant to this declaration, the State shall undertake programs and advocacies
to solve the nutritional and dietary needs of young students.

SEC. 3. The Program. - The Philippine Basic Education Nutrition and
Performance Acceleration Program, hereinafter referred to as the Program, is
hereby established. The Program shall accomplish the following objectives:

(a) Institutionalize a production and service system to address the nutritional
and dietary needs of elementary school children during school hours;

(b) Streamline the various school children feeding programs of the Department
of Education, the Department of Social Welfare and Development, and other
government agencies into one system, in order to increase efficacy in the use of
allocated resources;

Development, and other government agencies into one system, in
order to increase efficiency in the use of allocated resources;

(Eliminate the incidence of the nutritionally "wasted" and “severely
wasted" condition among children enrolled in public elementary schools;


(d) Accelerate and improve the academic performance and participation, and
physical development of children during the course of their basic education
course;

(e) Further increase elementary education enrollment rates and school
attendance records;

(fp Empower local government officials, members of the community, and
other local stakeholders to actively participate in the nutritional and educational
development of their local children;

(g) __ Ensure transparency, accountability, and efficacy in the disbursement and
distribution of funds and goods for the purposes of this Act.

The Program shall ensure that at least one meal on each school day of the
academic year is made available free-of-charge to all children enrolled in day
care, kindergarten, and grades 1-6 in all public educational institutions within
the Philippines.

Children who attend classes in the morning shall be provided with breakfast
before the start of their classes while children whose classes start in the
afternoon shall be provided with lunch before the start of their classes. Children
whose daily academic program exceeds (5) hours per day shall be provided with
both breakfast and lunch free-of-charge.

SEC. 4. National Committee. - The National Nutrition Council and its member
agencies, constituent departments, and committees shall be the implementing
body of the Program.

The National Nutrition Council Governing Board, its Secretariat and Technical
Committee, hereinafter collectively referred to as the National Committee, shall
be primarily responsible for policy formulation and evaluation of the Program.
Specifically, the National Committee shall have the following functions:

{a) Define the optimal nutrition standards and create a meal plan that will
meet the essential dietary requirements of children for active and energetic
participation in school;

(b) Create an operations manual that details the Program system and
instructs the various sub-committees on their specific role in the implementation
of the Program, including but not limited to rules and guidelines concerning
logistics, procurement, uniform brand and packaging identity, and quality
control. The National Committee shall then disseminate said manual to the sub-
committees;

(c)__ Draftan organizational staffing plan that outlines the number, nature, and
position of the personnel required by the sub-committees for the purpose of
implementing the Program;

(4) Facilitate efficient policy coordination between the various committees,


agencies, civil society and private sector stakeholders referred to under this Act;
and,

(ce) Establish a strategy for prioritized implementation of the Program in
areas where severe malnutrition occurs, and in conflict areas.

SEC. 5. Regional Nutrition Committees - The Regional Committees will be
primarily responsible for overseeing the implementation of the production and
service level of the Program by the City Nutrition Committees of those
designated by law as independent component or highly urbanized cities.
Specifically, the Regional Committees shall have the following functions:

(a) Conduct regular on-site inspections of the food preparation and delivery
operations of the Program undertaken by the City Committees under their
supervision;

(b) Submit quarterly progress reports to the National Committees detailing
the level of accomplishment of the City Committees under their supervision and
evaluating their compliance with the operations manual and other pertinent
provisions of this Act; and,

(c) Develop and implement quality control strategies to maintain an even
baseline of service quality amongst the City Committees under their jurisdiction.

SEC. 6. Provincial Nutrition Committees - The Provincial Committees shall
likewise perform the functions of the Regional Committees in overseeing the
Municipal Committees, and the City Committees not otherwise covered under
Sec. 5 of this Act.

SEC. 7. Local Committees - The City and Municipal Nutrition Committees,
hereinafter referred to as Local Committees, shall be primarily responsible for
the implementation of the production and service level of the Program.
Specifically, the Local Committees shall perform the following functions:

(a) Procure the necessary raw foodstuffs and other materials to prepare the
meals;

(b) | Coordinate the necessary logistical support for implementation of the
Program, including but not limited to the délivery of food stuffs to the
preparation facilities, the preparation of the meals on-site, and distribution of
the meals to the students;

(©) Implement the organizational staffing plan to ensure the training and
employment of the necessary support staff for the efficient implementation of
the Program; and,

(d) | Submit a monthly progress report to the corresponding Regional or
Provincial Committee detailing vital Program success indicators, including but
not limited to the quantity and price of food stuffs procured, the number of meals
prepared and served daily, the participation rate among students covered under
this Act, among others. The report should also indicate any Program weaknesses,
liabilities, or other problems incurred during the implementation of the
Program.



SEC. 8. Barangay Nutrition Committees - The Barangay Committees shall be
primarily responsible for documentation and other auxiliary concerns.
Specifically, the Barangay Committees shall perform the following functions:

(a) Record and document the daily service indicators and other information at
the school level, including but not limited to the indicators mentioned in Sec.
7(d) of this Act, and forward the information to their respective Local
Committees; and,

(b) Formulate and implement strategies to encourage volunteerism and
engagement in the Program by members of the community, to supplement
manpower needs and improve service quality.

SEC. 9. De-worming - In order to improve the effectiveness of the nutritional
outcomes of the Program, the Department of Health shall be responsible for
coordinating a de-worming program which shall serve all students identified as
Program beneficiaries under Sec. 4 of this Act. The de-worming shall be
conducted before the start of the meal schedule.

SEC. 10. Role of the Department of Education. - \n addition to its responsibilities
as a member agency of the National Committee, the Department of Education
have the following responsibilities:

(a) Coordinate with the participating Program schools to install sufficient
permanent facilities for the purpose of preparing the student meals, subject to
the provisions of applicable laws on sanitation;

(b) Implement an assessment system to track the academic performance of
Program beneficiaries; and,

(c) Provide logistical support for the Program at the school level, as
necessary.

SEC. 11. Role of the Department of Social Welfare and Development. - In addition
to its responsibilities as a member agency of the National Committee, the
Department of Social Welfare and Development shall use its expertise in feeding
programs to assist the Local Committees at the production and service level of
implementation of the Program. DSWD shall also assist the National Committee
in identifying and targeting priority areas as provided under Sec. 4(e) of this Act.

SEC. 12. Role of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority. -
TESDA shall provide assistance to the Local Committees in training and
employing personnel as provided under Sec. 7(c) of this Act.

SEC. 13. Private Sector Participation - Private sector participation is encouraged
under this Act. The National Committee, in cooperation with the subcommittees,
the Department of Finance, and relevant government agencies, shalll formulate a
system of incentives to encourage corporate social responsibility and individual
donations for the benefit of Program through various methods, including but not
limited to income tax credits, discounts for business permits registration, or
other assistance.


SEC. 14. Monitoring and Quality Control. - The National Committee in
coordination with its subcommittees and the LGUs shall strictly monitor the
activities that will be conducted at the production and service level of the
program. The procurement, handling, storage, transportation and sanitation of
the products whether in its raw or end stage must ensure that the quality and
safety protocols are followed and that measures are undertaken for the
prevention and control of food safety problems. Towards this end, the National
Committee shall facilitate the training and development of operating guidelines
in food safety under this Program to ensure reliable and consistent food
products.

The Local Committees shall ensure the actual delivery of the food to the student-
beneficiaries in accordance with the program specification and requirements. A
weekly compliance report, to include the liquidation and summary of expenses
shall form part of the quarterly assessment on the program.

SEC. 15. Performance and Financial Audit, - To further strengthen accountability
and improve public expenditure management, with the end in view of
eliminating waste and the ascertainment of the effectiveness of the program, a
quarterly performance audit shall be conducted by the Commission on Audit in
the first two years of the program's implementation, and every year thereafter.
The audit shall provide an overall picture of how various segments of the
program are implemented and whether the expected roles and responsibilities
of stakeholders are met, which outcome may lead to the identification of areas
where improvements can be introduced, and shall include, among others:

1) __ Review of the procedures for the program;

2) Evaluation of performance reports by the Local Committees;

3) _ Random interview of staff involved in the implementation of the program;
and,

4) Documentation of reports and validation from data source.

SEC. 16. Prohibition on Political Signage, ~ The Local Committees shall ensure
that the packaging of the meals and other produced materials are in
conformance to the uniform packaging and branding identity contained in the
operations manual as provided in Sec. 4(b) of this Act. It shall be prohibited for
any public officer to alter or cause an alteration in the packaging and branding
identity, including but not limited to:

(a) Affixing, or causing to be affixed, the name, image, or logo of any public
official on any production and service level materials related to the Program;
and,

(b) __ Installing, or causing to be installed, signage at the implementation site or
at any other place crediting an individual public officer for implementation of
any level of the Program, or bearing his or her image, name, or logo.

SEC. 17. Penal Provision. - Any public officer committing any of the prohibited
acts in the preceding section shall be punished with imprisonment for not less
than six (6) months nor more than one (1) year, and perpetual disqualification
from public office,


OO

SEC. 18. Appropriations. - For the initial operating expenses of the Program, the
sum of Sixty Billion Pesos (P60,000,000,000) is hereby appropriated from the
Presidential Social Fund, and from the profits and earnings of the Philippine
Charity Sweepstakes Office, the Philippine Gaming and Amusements
Corporation, and other revenue-generating agencies of the government.
Thereafter, such sum necessary for its continuous implementation shall be
included in the annual General Appropriations Act.

SEC. 19. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within ninety (90) days from the
approval of this Act, the Department of Health, in coordination with the National
Nutrition Council and the Local Government Units through the Department of
Interior and Local Government, shall promulgate the rules and regulations to
implement the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 20. Separability Clause. - Should any part of this Act be declared
unconstitutional, the rest of the provisions of this Act shall continue to be in
effect and subsisting.

SEC. 21. Repealing Clause. - The provisions of other laws, decrees, executive
orders, rules and regulations inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed,
amended, or modified accordingly.

SEC. 22. Effectivity. - This Act shalt take effect fifteen (15) days after its
publication in the Official Gazette and/or in at least two {2) national newspapers
in general circulation.