Number of schools included in hot meal program grows in Kyrgyzstan

Bishkek, Nov. 20, 2018. /Kabar/. Today, another 83 educational institutions joined 420 pilot schools of Kyrgyzstan, in which the Ministry of Education and Science of the Kyrgyz Republic and the UN World Food Program (WFP) introduced hot meals.

Thus, already more than 145 thousand elementary school students will receive high-quality hot meals at schools every day. This was made possible thanks to the financial support of the Russian Federation, which previously allocated $ 10 million for a five-year program to optimize school feeding, the WFP UN Office in the Kyrgyz Republic reported.

Thanks to these financial resources, schools received industrial electric stoves, multi-compartment ovens, electric frying pans, kneading devices, refrigeration equipment, water heaters, multi-compartment washers, vegetable peelers and vegetable cutters, shelving and preperation tables - everything that is needed for organizing hot meals.

In addition, the UN WFP, in collaboration with the Russian Institute of Sectoral Nutrition, provided school counseling on school meals, developed technology projects for each school, organized training for school chefs, and developed a new menu taking into account school preferences and capabilities.

At the first lunch, Minister of Education and Science of the Kyrgyz Republic Gulmira Kudaiberdieva, representatives of the Embassy of the Russian Federation, local authorities and the UN WFP in the Kyrgyz Republic visited the secondary school of Krasnaya Rechka village of Chuy Oblast.

UN WFP Country Director for the Kyrgyz Republic Andrea Bagnoli told that hot school lunches are not as easy as it seems at first glance. Behind this is a good deal of hard work of technologists and cooks, support of school administration, participation of parents, local authorities and partners, donor commitment and necessary government supervision. Bagnoli added that school nutrition affects the overall development of a child, creates a more favorable educational atmosphere, which is a key factor in the future economic development of the regions and the country as a whole.

The program to optimize school feeding in the Kyrgyz Republic has been carried out since 2013 with the continued financial support of the Russian Federation. The main goal is to improve the quality of school meals in the country, in 2,200 schools in the country.

For efficiency and sustainability, this initiative has received wide support from the government and local authorities, the public, including parents, and has also aroused considerable interest from other donors and development partners.

In particular, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) also contributed to the development of school nutrition in the country, allocating 2,700 apple trees to form 15 school gardens. Products will be used for school meals.

Andrea Bagnoli noted that by combining the efforts of donors, government agencies and partners, it will be possible to ensure the sustainable development of school meals in Kyrgyzstan.

The UN WFP is the largest humanitarian organization in the world that fights hunger worldwide, delivers food in emergency situations, and works with local communities to increase their resilience and improve nutrition. Annually, the UN WFP helps about 80 million people in 80 countries of the world.