Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

Sixteenth Congress
First Regular Session

nouse Bit. no. 680

Introduced by Rep. GEORGE P. ARNAIZ

EXPLANATORY NOTE

It has been said that the future of our country lies in our children
hence it is deem appropriate that the government should invest
sufficient resources for their holistic development. Proper nourishment of
our school children should be a primordial concern of our government
in order to enhance scholastic stimulation a child gets, if the child is not
developmentally ready to do so, teaching will be a waste of time and
effort. It is said that health and education are the surest ways to climb.
the socio-economic ladder. But we cannot achieve this vision as long
as many of our children are languishing in their homes in hunger instead
of eagerly learning in school.

However, it is unfortunate that the Philippines is one of the
countries where nutritional deficiencies and health problems hinder
children’s progress in school. There is a general weak predisposition of
students to learn due to their poor health and nutrition and this has a
serious implication as they advance in the education level. Our
education system is besieged with educational malaise as reflected in
the elementary enrolment profile. This has haunted our education
system for the longest time. Department of Education data shows that
cohort survival rate of public elementary school pupils is deteriorating
every year with a drop put rate of about 32% or even worse in the
countryside. Aside from the increasing drop-out rate, our government
has to address the mediocre performance of pupils especially in the
core disciplines of Science and Mathematics. It is a fact that the
performance of our elementary school children is deteriorating with
Filipino pupils ranking near the bottom among 25 countries surveyed.
Indeed there is a need to check the decline in the quality of our


education or the damage would be ireversible. It will take several
generations before the nation can recover from the consequences of
a poorly educated citizenry.

This bill provides for a nationwide school-feeding program, which is
intended to address the problem of malnutrition, declining scholastic
performance and low cohort survival rate among school children. It is
intent of the bill to make this feeding program a community based
program to ensure its sustainability.

GEQRGE P. ARNAIZ
Representative
2N° District, Oriental Negros


ee
Republic of the Philippines

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

Sixteenth Congress
First Regular Session

House Bit no. 680

Introduced by Rep. GEORGE P. ARNAIZ

AN ACT PROVIDING FOR A NATIONWIDE SCHOOL FEEDING
PROGRAM AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

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

SECTION 1. Title. This Act shall be known as the “National School
Feeding Program of the Philippines".

SECTION 2. Statement of policy. It is hereby declared a policy of
the State to promote and strengthen proper nutrition among
schoolchildren in order to safeguard them from ill effects of
malnutrition. There is a direct correlation between good nutrition and
propensity of the child to develop into a physically and mentally
healthy individual.

It is also declared a policy of the state to encourage
domestic consumption of agricultural products and other nutritious
food in order to effectively meet the nutritional requirements of
children.

SECTION 3. The Program. A Nationwide School Feeding Program
(referred to as the Program) is hereby established, where the National
Nutrition Council (NNC) and the Department of Education (DepEd) in
coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and Development
(DSWD) and the Department of Agriculture (DA) shall initiate, maintain
and expand a system of rice and legumes supplements to public
elementary school children for a minimum of one-hundred-twenty (120)
feeding days, five (5) times a week. The Program shall be a


community-based undertaking and shall be administered inside the
classrooms. The Program likewise aims to make parents and school
pupils aware of the importance of good nutrition, as well as proper
hygiene by providing relevant and user-friendly nutrition information
and education materials.

SECTION 4. Objectives of the Program. The Program shall:
a} Provide free noon meal to all public elementary school pupils;

b) Each pupil will be given lunch based on a menu determined by
the NNC in coordination with the Department of Education,
ensuring that the meal meets the required nutritional level for
school pupils;

c) The school pupils shall eat their ration;
Provided, that if a school child was absent, the school feeding
coordinator in each schoo! shall ensure that their share for that
day shall be added to their share the next feeding day when
they reported back to class;
Provided, further, that only twice the usual serving portion shall
be allowed to an absentee school child;
Provided, finally that in case of prolonged absence, the meal
shall be given on a staggered basis, doubling their share every
feeding day until the school pupil catches up with the others;

SECTION 5. Social Mobilization and Preparation. Orientation-
training shall be held among DepEd health and nutrition unit personnel
at the regional and division levels, concerned local government
representatives, and the parent-teacher associations (PTAs), in order to
orient them on the Program's objectives and mechanics and generate
support for the Program. An orientation-workshop shall be conducted
at the district and school levels for the district and school level heads,
concerned local government representatives, and Presidents of the
PTAs. The output shall be the school's plan of action containing the
roles and responsibilities of the concerned school personnel, LGU
representative, and PTA officers. Training and orientation shall be
conducted by the DepEd core of trainors, with personnel trained at the
school division level being responsible for training the staff at the district,
and municipal level; and those trained at the municipal level training
the implementers and feeding coordinators at the school level. The
feeding coordinator shall conduct the briefing among parents and
children, including determining the baseline knowledge of the children
and their parents on nutrition through a pre-test and delineating the
roles among parents during the duration of the feeding program.
Feeding paraphernalia consisting of placemats, table napkin, spoon,



fork, bowls, mugs, and drinking glasses should be provided by the
pupils.

SECTION 6. Simultaneous Examination. A simultaneous health
examination and de-worming of all school pupils shall be done before
the start of the feeding program, and shall be conducted by the
respective school nurses. Children found with ailments shall be given
proper treatment or referred to hospitals. Class Advisers shall note the
progress of each pupil for the entire duration of the implementation of
this program. There should be a quarterly progress report to be
submitted by each school to the Division Superintendent.

SECTION 7. Inter-Deparimental Coordination. For the effective
implementation of this Act, the Department of Agriculture, Department
of Education, and Department of Interior and Local Government,
through various Local Government Units should coordinate with each
other in camying out this feeding program. The role of each agency,
among others, shall be:

a) Department of Agriculture. The Secretary of Agriculture shall
provide technical assistance and training to schools in the
cultivation and preparation of foods high in complex
carbohydrates, high protein, low-fat versions commonly used. for
the feeding program, to assist the schools in complying with the
nutitional requirements prescribed by the NNC in providing
appropriate meals to the school pupils.

SECTION 8. Procurement and Storage of Food Supplies.
Procurement of the food supplies shall be done by the respective
Provincial governments in coordination with the Department of
Education and the Department of Agriculture. Food requirements
should be sourced locally, provided that these are available in the
locality.

Provided, that the PTA shall be the direct suppliers of the food

requirements. If food requirements cannot be sourced locally,

alternative sources from other suppliers shall be made available in
coordination with the Department of Agriculture, Provided further,
that the price of the food supplied shall not exceed 90% of the
prevailing market price at the time of sale. The various local
government units shall be the conduit of the food supplies in
coordination with the local Parent- Teachers-and Community
Association (PTCA).

SECTION 9. Utilization of food in abundance or donated. Each
school participating under the Program shall insofar as practicable,
utilize its Program, foods designated from time to time by the Secretary
of Agriculture, as being in abundance, either nationally or in the school


area, or foods donated by the private entities with the consent of the
DepEd and NNC.

SECTION 10. Participation of the Local Government Unit. Local
Government Units where school districts are located shall provide a
counterpart fund of at least twenty percent (20%) of the cost incurred
for the Program implemented within their jurisdiction.

SECTION 11. Priority Areas. In case of shortage of funds, the
implementation of the Program shall first be undertaken in the province
wehre malnutrition rates are most severe, as may be determined by the
NNC.

SECTION 12. Appropriations. An initial sum of One Hundred Million
Pesos (P100,000,000) is hereby appropriated for the first year of
implementation of the Program. Thereafter, all appropriations shall be
taken from the annual appropriation of the NNC. Provided, that alll
administrative expenses of the Program shall be taken from the DepEd
annual appropriations.

SECTION 13. Separability Clause. If any part or section of this Act is
declared unconstitutional, such declaration shall not affect the other
parts or sections of this Act.

SECTION 14. Repealing Clause. All laws, presidential decrees,
executive orders, rules and regulations inconsistent with any provisions
of this Act shall be deemed released or modified accordingly

SECTION 14. Effectivity Clause. This act shall take effect fifteen (15)
days after its publication in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,