{"id":32122,"date":"2026-06-22T10:17:19","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T13:17:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/18-countries-in-the-region-agree-on-priorities-for-a-joint-agenda-to-strengthen-school-feeding-programmes\/"},"modified":"2026-06-22T10:29:38","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T13:29:38","slug":"18-countries-in-the-region-agree-on-priorities-for-a-joint-agenda-to-strengthen-school-feeding-programmes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/18-countries-in-the-region-agree-on-priorities-for-a-joint-agenda-to-strengthen-school-feeding-programmes\/","title":{"rendered":"18 Countries in the Region Agree on Priorities for a Joint Agenda to Strengthen School Feeding Programmes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The document establishes seven strategic priorities to strengthen school feeding programmes and expand access to adequate food for millions of students.<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paulo Beraldo and Palova Brito<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bras\u00edlia, Brazil, 19 June 2026<\/strong> \u2013 Currently, nearly 80 million students receive school meals in Latin America and the Caribbean. However, the region\u2019s student population is estimated at 170 million children and adolescents, highlighting the need to expand coverage and strengthen the quality of school feeding programmes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To guide and support actions aimed at strengthening school feeding programmes across the region over the coming years, the 18 member countries of the Sustainable School Feeding Network (RAES) approved the RAES Regional Agenda 2026\u20132030, the result of a collaborative effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The document, developed and validated by RAES member countries, establishes seven strategic priorities to promote more sustainable, inclusive and resilient public policies: governance and management; promotion of healthy diets; legal and regulatory frameworks; sustainable financing; public procurement from family farming; food, nutrition and environmental education; and monitoring and evaluation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Latin America has made significant progress in strengthening these programmes. According to the study A Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of the Trajectory of School Feeding Programmes in Latin America and the Caribbean<\/em> (FAO; ABC\/MRE; FNDE\/MEC, 2025), government investment in school feeding programmes increased from US$2.63 billion in 2012 to US$3.59 billion in 2022. In addition, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras and Paraguay have enacted school feeding laws. Currently, 30 countries in the region have school feeding programmes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since 2018, when RAES was established by the Government of Brazil, represented by the Brazilian Cooperation Agency of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (ABC\/MRE) and the National Fund for Educational Development (FNDE), with FAO serving as Executive Secretariat, actions have been promoted alongside countries in Latin America and the Caribbean to strengthen school feeding programmes through the exchange of experiences, knowledge and good practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These programmes combine nutrition, education and rural development. They also play a key role in transforming agrifood systems. Through public procurement from family farming, school feeding programmes create economic opportunities for local producers. One concrete example is RAES\u2019 support for more than 9,000 family farmers across the region who have been integrated into public procurement schemes, enabling better incomes for their families.

Impact on Nutrition and Learning
<\/strong>More than 150 participants gathered for the virtual launch of the RAES Regional Agenda, which featured an opening video message from Brazil\u2019s First Lady and FAO Special Goodwill Ambassador for the Fight Against Hunger, Janja Lula da Silva. \u201cI know how much our Sustainable School Feeding Network has advanced thanks to hard work, cooperation and collaboration,\u201d she stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regarding the RAES Regional Agenda, Janja Lula da Silva commented: \u201cIt gives us confidence that we are on the right path to achieve our greatest goal: ensuring nutritious food for all students, advancing education for our population, and promoting the development of our nations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Brazil, the National School Feeding Programme (PNAE), implemented by FNDE for more than six decades, benefits approximately 38 million students every day in nearly 145,000 schools. FNDE President Fernanda Pacobahyba highlighted the importance of strengthening school feeding as a State policy because \u201cit is much more than a simple meal. It is about ensuring that children and adolescents remain in school. That is why international cooperation is so strategic, and RAES is an example of this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ABC\/MRE Director Ambassador Ruy Pereira celebrated the Regional Agenda as \u201ca historic regional achievement for cooperation on school feeding that will make a major contribution to food and nutrition security in Latin America and the Caribbean.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

School feeding plays a strategic role in food security, especially in a context of rising overweight and obesity rates among children as well as adults. This challenge is linked to the school environment, where overweight and obesity affect between 20 and 40 percent of students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya Takagi, Regional Programme Leader at the FAO Regional Office, emphasized that these programmes not only guarantee access to food but also promote food education and connect meals to locally produced, highly nutritious foods. She added that \u201cevery dollar invested in this policy generates multiple benefits for health, nutrition and the local economy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carlos Par\u00eds, Vice Minister of Social Policies at Paraguay\u2019s Ministry of Social Development, noted that the Regional Agenda is a tool that will help define joint actions among all countries implementing school feeding programmes. \u201cI would like to highlight the work of Brazilian cooperation throughout these years, which resulted in the establishment of RAES and has fostered coordination, exchange of experiences and sharing of good practices across the region.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Yolanda G\u00f3ngora, Chief Education Officer at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Technology of Belize, presented the country’s progress in school feeding, highlighting the expansion in the number of schools and students reached in recent years, as well as efforts to strengthen food and nutrition education and public procurement from local producers. She emphasized that participation in the RAES has been instrumental in fostering the exchange of experiences and access to learning opportunities, contributing to the strengthening and expansion of the programme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Daniela Godoy, FAO Food Security Policy Officer, added that despite progress in the fight against hunger, the region is facing a growing double burden of malnutrition. Therefore, well-designed school feeding programmes are essential. \u201cWe have 30 countries with school feeding programmes, 18 members of the RAES, 14 implementing the Sustainable Schools methodology, and 8 with school feeding laws. These achievements have been made possible through Brazil\u2019s cooperation and the role of the Parliamentary Fronts Against Hunger in advancing school feeding legislation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Soraya Suarez, Member of Parliament from the Dominican Republic and Regional Coordinator of the Parliamentary Front Against Hunger, highlighted that the Agenda represents a shared vision for the future of the region and a concrete roadmap for moving forward together. However, she stressed that having school feeding programmes is not enough; they must be strengthened, institutionalized, and protected in order to become lasting State policies. \u201cWhen there are laws, stable budgets, and adequate intersectoral coordination, school feeding programmes generate impacts that go beyond the school environment, helping to improve student attendance and retention while promoting healthy eating habits,\u201d she stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donald Bundy, Director of the Research Consortium of the School Meals Coalition, provided insights into the role of evidence, cooperation, and partnerships with academia in strengthening school feeding programmes. Najla Veloso, Executive Secretary of the RAES and FAO Senior School Feeding Specialist, noted that the Regional Agenda demonstrates a clear commitment to collective action in support of guaranteeing the human right to adequate food in schools. \u201cWe hope that this Agenda and the priorities defined by countries will contribute to ensuring that more students have the conditions needed for their cognitive, personal, and social development through school feeding programmes that are increasingly sustainable, resilient, and inclusive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Video:<\/strong> RAES Regional Agenda for Sustainable School Feeding in Latin America and the Caribbean: https:\/\/youtu.be\/O-QUMQKPYtg<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Link to the document: <\/strong>https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/raes-regional-agenda-for-sustainable-school-feeding-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean-2026-2030\/<\/a>
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The document establishes seven strategic priorities to strengthen school feeding programmes and expand access to adequate food for millions of students. Paulo Beraldo and Palova Brito Bras\u00edlia, Brazil, 19 June 2026 \u2013 Currently, nearly 80 million students receive school meals in Latin America and the Caribbean. However, the region\u2019s student population is estimated at 170 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":32121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[662,163,495],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32122","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-banner-en","category-news","category-news-home"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32122","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32122"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32122\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32127,"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32122\/revisions\/32127"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32122"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32122"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redraes.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32122"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}