Wazzup Pilipinas!?
MAKATI CITY, 8 January 2026 -- Backed by a record budget allocation of Php1.015-trillion for basic education, the Department of Education (DepEd) will significantly expand the School-Based Feeding Program (SBFP) in 2026, targeting around 4.6 million learners nationwide as part of the government’s push to address malnutrition and improve school participation.
With the strong support of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and the Congress, the Department has secured Php25.7 billion for the expanded SBFP, allowing wider coverage across early grades and nutritionally at-risk learners in higher levels.
Under the expanded program, DepEd will provide nutritious meals to about 1.52 million kindergarten learners and 1.79 million Grade 1 learners for 200 feeding days. An additional 1.18 million learners in Grades 2 to 6 who are classified as wasted or severely wasted will also receive meals for the same duration.
“Malinaw po sa datos na hindi makakapag-aral nang maayos ang bata kung gutom siya. Kaya pinalalawak natin ang School-Based Feeding Program para mas maraming mag-aaral ang mabigyan ng sapat na nutrisyon, lalo na sa mga unang baitang at sa mga pinaka-nangangailangan,” Education Secretary Sonny Angara said. “Higit sa pagbibigay ng pagkain, layunin ng programa na matulungan ang mga bata na manatili sa paaralan at maging handa sa pagkatuto araw-araw,”
For the first time, the program will also cover around 140,000 nutritionally at-risk, disadvantaged, and vulnerable learners beyond grade 6 including pregnant learners enrolled in public schools, who will receive nutritional support for 180 feeding days.
This component of the program will be implemented in coordination with the Department of Health (DOH), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), integrating maternal and child health support.
The expanded coverage reflects the government’s renewed focus on improving learning readiness by addressing hunger and malnutrition, which continue to affect school attendance, participation, and overall academic performance, particularly among learners from disadvantaged communities.
To improve program targeting and implementation, the Department will roll out the System for Intelligent Growth and Learner Anthropometry (SIGLA), an Artificial Intelligence-enabled platform designed to streamline the collection and validation of learners’ health and nutrition data.
Local government units may serve as implementing partners through memoranda of agreement, with DepEd encouraging on-the-ground collaboration in program delivery. In providing meals and other learner needs, the Department said preference and priority will be given to locally produced food and refreshments, or Philippine-made products, in line with the Tatak Pinoy Act (Republic Act No. 11981), supporting local producers while ensuring fresh and culturally appropriate food for learners.
Meanwhile, milk feeding under the program will be handled by the National Dairy Authority and the Philippine Carabao Center, supporting both learner nutrition and the local dairy industry.
DepEd said the expanded School-Based Feeding Program underscores the administration’s commitment to making schools not only centers of learning, but also safe and supportive spaces where learners’ basic needs are addressed.
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
.jpg)
Post a Comment