Lima- During the week of August 14 to 18, Peru hosted an international technical mission, made up of managers and technicians specialized in school feeding policies from 13 Latin American nations. The international delegation will be made up of representatives from Brazil, Colombia, Chile, El Salvador, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela.

The objective was to disseminate with countries the Sustainable Schools methodology, an initiative developed in the region for more than 10 years, and which is already present in more than 23 thousand educational centers, aiming at strengthening national school feeding programs. It was an opportunity for visiting countries to learn more about the successful school feeding initiatives implemented by the Government of Peru, in addition to discussing regulatory and technical advances in local policy.

This international mission took place as part of the Consolidation of School Feeding Programs in Latin America and the Caribbean project, within the framework of the Brazil-FAO International Cooperation Program, in alliance with the FAO Representation in Peru and the Peruvian Government.

In addition to the project, the partnership between FAO and Brazil has promoted the Sustainable School Feeding Network (RAES), which supports Latin American and Caribbean countries in the implementation and reformulation of their school feeding programs, for access to healthy eating and the human right to adequate food. Peru is one of the 21 countries of this network.

About the visits

During the technical mission, the international delegation visited the municipality of San Antonio, located in the province of Cañete, where they had the opportunity to talk with local producers, technicians, government authorities and school directors. This activity provided a better understanding of the linkages with local producers within the framework of the National School Feeding Program - Qali Warma.

Emphasis was placed on quality assurance and safety spanning from the production and primary processing stage to the delivery phase to educational institutions. In Cañete, four educational institutions, with a total of 573 students, are beneficiaries of food from two small producer organizations. The primary products are bananas and plain Greek yogurt.

In the second visit to an education institution, in the district of Puente Piedra, participants learnt about food services and its infrastructure, preparation of food for healthy diets, the school garden, and the involvement of parents.

 This is a translation of the news published in Spanish here.