KHUJAND, January 14, 2008, Asia-Plus — In the second half-year of 2008, the Country Office of the UN World Food Program (WFP) provided 2,067 tons of foods to the Sughd province to ensure free meals for schoolchildren, according to the Sughd education directorate.
Consignment of foods that is annually provided to schools in northern Tajikistan has included wheat flour, vegetable oil, peas, and iodized salt.
“These products are sued for production of free hot meals for primary school children,” said the source at the education directorate, “At present 130,994 schoolchildren in the Sughd province receive hot meals.”
WFP started the school feeding program in Tajikistan in 1999 covering 5,000 school children. During the 2007-2008 academic year, WFP provided hot meals on a daily basis to 265,000 primary school children, while 105,000 secondary school girls received food to take home as a reward for good attendance.
This school year, WFP will provide hot meals to an additional 100,000 primary school children, increasing the country-wide coverage to more than 50 percent of school children in grades 1 to 4. The increase for the 2008-2009 school year is one of WFP”s responses to the current food insecurity situation in Tajikistan.
