Makati City Mayor and senatorial aspirant Abby Binay on Monday, April 14, vowed to push for free healthy snacks and meals in schools to address nutritional deficiencies among students as well as improve their overall academic performance.
She said the move is part of her proposed initiatives to further improve the country's quality of education and stop its decline, stressing that the government must first focus on the basic needs of students which includes providing proper nutrition to them.
“Napaka-importante ng wastong nutrisyon para makapag-aral nang mabuti ang mga estudyante. Kahit anong galing magturo ng kanilang mga guro at kahit may sapat silang kagamitan sa pag-aaral, mahihirapan silang ma-absorb ang mga leksyon kung nagugutom sila at kulang sa nutrisyon (Proper nutrition is essential for students to be able to study effectively. If they don't receive the right nutrition, they will surely have a hard time to absorb the lectures being taught to them regardless if the teacher is highly skilled or not)," Binay explained.
"Sa basics lang muna tayo. Unahin natin ang kalusugan ng ating mga kabataan bago pa man tayo mamigay ng mga tablet o computer. Hindi rin magiging epektibo ang pagtatayo ng modernong school buildings kung hindi agad na matutugunan ang mga problema sa malnutrition tulad ng stunting at wasting sa ating mga mag-aaral (Let's focus on the basics first. Let's prioritize the health and wellness of our youth before giving away tablets and computers. Modern school buildings and facilities will also not be effective if we will not be able to address the problem of malnutriton first, including stunting and wasting among our students)," she added.
The mayor said she will push for comprehensive solutions, such as a nationwide feeding program targeting children at risk for malnutrition, especially those from poor families in rural and urban areas.
“The malnutrition problem requires a multi-stakeholder approach. Government, at the national and local levels, including the barangays, and the private sector, should synchronize their efforts to be able to sustain large-scale initiatives, such as a nationwide feeding program,” Binay said.
She also cited Makati’s Project FEED (Food for Excellent Education and Development) which she launched in March 2023 to provide free nutritious snacks to students in public elementary schools in the city.
“We partnered with the Department of Science and Technology in creating nutritious snacks for our students from Kinder to Grade 6. Project FEED aims to alleviate hunger and develop healthy eating habits among young students,” Binay noted, adding that the program also helps parents financially as they will no longer have to worry about their children's food while in school.
She also underscored the importance of raising awareness, especially among mothers, on the importance of proper nutrition starting from conception.
Her administration initiated the Baby Makatizen Project in 2018 to encourage pregnant residents to have regular prenatal checkups at the city’s health centers and city-run Ospital ng Makati.
“We want them to fully benefit from our programs promoting safe pregnancy and childbirth and the health and well-being of both mother and child,” Binay said.
Mothers who have completed at least eight prenatal checkups under the Yellow Card Program are rewarded with newborn kits. These contain essentials like cloth diapers and washcloths, belly binders, swaddle blankets, infant clothes and booties, and rattle.
Through its comprehensive nutrition program, Makati has kept its malnutrition prevalence rate among the lowest in the country at 0.27 percent as of 2024.