The good news is that the Senate has approved a bigger budget for the Department of Education (DepEd) next year that will expand the agency’s school feeding coverage to 4.49 million learners and make Kindergarten and Grade 1 feeding universal for the first time.
With ₱28.66 billion allocated to the School-Based Feeding Program (SBFP)—more than double last year—the daily feeding duration extends to 200 days, while 45-day targeted feeding will support 604,134 junior high school and 200,663 senior high school severely wasted and wasted learners.
An additional 7,276 adolescent pregnant learners will receive nutritional assistance.
The increased budget is consistent with the administration’s vision to prioritize early childhood care and development initiatives.
Under Secretary Sonny Angara’s watch, DepEd has begun implementing a broader SBFP for SY 2025–2026, starting with the inclusion of all Kindergarten learners—not just undernourished ones—as part of a shift toward universal early nutrition.
The program will provide hot meals and fortified food products to Kindergarten and Grade 1 pupils and severely wasted and wasted Grade 2 to 6 learners, a move backed by early gains in the field.
vious data showed that the number of severely wasted Kindergarten children dropped from 113,451 to 47,281 in a year.
The DepEd initiative will mean stronger support for child nutrition, especially among the poor.
The higher budget for the school-based feeding program signals a major government investment in fighting childhood undernutrition.
It will also lead to better learning outcomes and classroom readiness, since hungry children cannot focus, absorb lessons, or participate fully in school.
Moreover, the program will ensure that students will have higher chances of staying in school despite poverty. For many poor families, sending children to school already imposes costs (transportation, uniform, allowances).
Ensuring that children get a reliable daily meal reduces a significant burden and removes one key reason children skip school.
Yet another benefit of the program is that early childhood intervention will yields long-term benefits.
By making Kindergarten and Grade 1 feeding universal, the government will focus on building a strong human capital foundation.
This is an investment that will pay off later through healthier adults with better educational attainment and higher productivity.
At a time when poverty continues to weigh heavily on millions of Filipino families, the Senate’s decision to more than double the program’s allocation to ₱28.66 billion is not merely an administrative adjustment. It is a statement of national priorities – and an overdue recognition that hungry children cannot learn.
