Angara says 2026 budget sustains universal, targeted feeding
MANILA, Philippines — The Senate-approved 2026 education budget significantly expands the Department of Education’s School-Based Feeding Program (SBFP), raising coverage to 4.49 million learners and making feeding universal for all Kindergarten and Grade 1 pupils for the first time.
Under the proposed budget, ₱28.66 billion was allocated for the SBFP—more than double the previous year’s funding—extending daily feeding to 200 days. The program will also provide 45-day targeted feeding to 604,134 junior high school and 200,663 senior high school learners identified as severely wasted or wasted.
An additional 7,276 adolescent pregnant learners are set to receive nutritional assistance.
Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara said the expansion aligns with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s push to prioritize early childhood care and development, building on reforms already in place, including universal feeding for Kindergarten and Grade 1 learners and continued targeted support for undernourished pupils in higher grades.
“We see it in the children and in the stories of our teachers—that students are more awake, more energetic, and more ready to listen when their stomachs are full. That is the strongest proof that the program works,” Angara said.
“There is data and there are stories. The President saw this, and the Senate and the House agreed,” he added. “When you see the number of severely wasted children going down, you know the direction is right.”
Under Angara’s leadership, DepEd began implementing a broader SBFP for School Year 2025–2026, starting with the inclusion of all Kindergarten learners, not only those who are undernourished, as part of a shift toward universal early nutrition.
The program provides hot meals and fortified food products to Kindergarten and Grade 1 pupils, as well as severely wasted and wasted learners in Grades 2 to 6. DepEd earlier reported that the number of severely wasted Kindergarten children declined from 113,451 to 47,281 within a year.
Angara also cited improvements in SBFP infrastructure, with more than 74 central kitchens now operating nationwide and over 44,000 schools strengthening their Gulayan sa Paaralan initiatives, which supply fresh vegetables for meals and reinforce hands-on nutrition education.
For 2026, DepEd secured funding for 219 central kitchens and new mobile kitchen units, while enlisting more local government units to directly manage program implementation in their jurisdictions.
Angara said the 2026 budget would enable the department to continue a combination of universal and targeted feeding programs.
“We are strengthening the foundation in Kindergarten and Grade 1, but we are not leaving behind those most at risk in the higher grades,” he said. “If we want children to stay in school, we have to make sure they are well-fed and strong.”
