More than 150,000 pre-primary and primary
school students will get a daily energy boost to help them concentrate better
on their studies thanks to a contribution from Cuba.
Over
180 metric tonnes of sugar has been donated to the United Nations World Food
Programme (WFP).
The
sugar will be mixed into a nutritious daily mid-morning snack – dumplings made
from a blend of corn and soy - for school students in rural areas throughout
six provinces in the far north and south of Laos, according to a press release
from WFP.
The
Cuban donation was made possible thanks to a private citizen of Japan, who
funded the shipment from Cuba to Laos. In a statement, he expressed his hope
that his contribution will play a small part in making the world a better
place.
A
handover ceremony took place at the Ministry of Education and Sports yesterday,
attended by Deputy Minister Lytou Bouapao, Ambassador of the Republic of Cuba
to Laos Waldo Reyes Sardinas, and WFP Representative and Country Director to
Laos Ms Eri Kudo.
Ms Kudo
said during the ceremony “No child should attend school hungry. To reach this
goal we work closely with the Lao government and our donors to support rural
families.”
“This
donation is a great example of South-South cooperation and how WFP is
catalysing partnerships between the public and private sector in fighting
hunger. Many Latin American countries have in recent years gained expertise in
managing their own school meals programmes. Laos can gain valuable knowledge
from their experience,” she added.
Mr
Lytou said “This is the first time Cuba has supported the WFP-assisted School
Meals Programme and this kind of donation is a further example of the strong
friendship already uniting our two nations.”
Currently,
more than 200,000 pre-primary and primary school children in remote villages in
Phongsaly, Luang Namtha, Oudomxay, Saravan, Xekong and Attapeu benefit from the
WFP-assisted school meals programme. Every day, they receive a nutritious
mid-morning snack to ease hunger and help them concentrate on their lessons.
Additional
food support is given to more than 4,500 informal boarders – students who live
far from school and have to make an extra effort to attend every day, with many
of them staying in boarding facilities or with relatives. At the beginning and
end of the school year, take-home rations of rice are given to support their
families and help them continue with their education.
WFP is
the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. In 2011, WFP
Laos provided 8,800 tonnes of food to more than 610,000 people throughout the
country.
News
Desk
Vientiane
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