Guyana participates in IX School Feeding Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean

Over the last three days, Guyana participated in the IX School Feeding Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean hosted in Barranquilla, Columbia.

The country was represented by the Ministry of Education’s School Feeding Coordinator, Mahendra Phagwah. During a discussion, he stated that the Government of Guyana is keen on ensuring that vulnerable children receive a meal every day and further highlighted the Government’s plans to expand the School Feeding Programme to better serve students in need.

He noted that the proper health and nutrition of students remain a priority in the execution of the programme.

Mr Phagwah also interacted with WFP Regional Director, Regis Chapman on the School Feeding Programme in Guyana and agreed to a collaboration on exchanging information to better the school feeding programme in the Caribbean and Latin America.

The forum which brings together high-level representatives from over 18 countries in the region is a collaborative effort between the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean of the World Food Programme and the Columbian Ministry of Education and Special Administrative Unit for School Feeding.

The event aimed to identify opportunities and challenges regarding school feeding programmes and produce conclusions and recommendations. These will be used for future collaborations among countries.

During the three days, participants visited schools in Colombia where they got a first-hand experience of Columbia’s school feeding program. This included the preparation of meals along with interacting with students.