Lawmaker Flags 55% Cut in DepEd School Feeding Program

A LAWMAKER on Tuesday called for the restoration of funding for the Department of Education’s (DepEd) School-Based Feeding Program, warning that the proposed budget cut would significantly reduce the program’s implementation. Party-list Rep. Sarah Jane I. Elago said that the program’s allocation was reduced by about P14 billion, or 55.51%, questioning how DepEd would sustain its services with the lower funding. “It is clear that allocating less than half of the funds for the School-Based Feeding Program will have a massive impact on the program,” Ms. Elago said in Filipino during the House of Representatives plenary budget deliberation. DepEd budget sponsor Davao de Oro Rep. Maria Carmen Zamora-Mabanglo said the reduced allocation would cut the program’s implementation to 120 days from 180 days. “[The implementation] will be limited for kindergarten learners in terms of universal coverage,” Ms. Zamora said in mixed English and Filipino. The cut was concerning as it comes amid continuing cases of stunting and malnutrition among basic education learners, Ms. Elago said. She said she supported restoring the program’s funding to its 2026 level to maintain the current level of services for learners. Ms. Elago also asked whether DepEd was directly working with local farming and fishing cooperatives to source food for the feeding program, citing the implementation of Executive Order No. 101 and the Sagip Saka Act. The procurement for the program had already been localized at the division level, with local farmers’ produce being considered in the procurement of rice, Ms. Zamora said. She said DepEd had used about P35.2 million to procure from local farmers in line with the Sagip Saka Act. — Pexcel John Bacon