The government is set to reintroduce the midday meal program at government primary schools across the country in April this year.
Approximately 3.13 million students from about 20,000 primary schools, mostly located in poverty-prone areas, will benefit from the feeding scheme.
"The government has initiated this program to provide a midday meal five days a week to ensure students' nutrition and prevent dropouts," said Directorate of Primary Education (DPE) Director General Abu Noor Md Shamsuzzaman, speaking to BSS.
He added that the three-year project will play a crucial role in ensuring the quality education of students.
According to DPE officials, the project will be implemented nationwide in phases.
The school feeding program will be launched in 19,419 government primary schools across 150 upazilas in 62 districts.
The midday meal will consist of milk, eggs, bread, and seasonal fruits.
A roadmap has been developed for distributing dry nutritious food in three phases.
The cost of the meal will be approximately Tk39 to 40 per student, and a local committee, working under the supervision of the upazila nirbahi officer, will ensure the program’s discipline.
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) recently approved a three-year project proposal worth Tk5,452 crore.
The government will fund the school feeding program from its own resources, and the project will be implemented by the DPE.
Primary and Mass Education Adviser Professor Dr Bidhan Ranjan Roy said that the primary goal of the midday meal project is to ensure the nutrition of schoolchildren.
"Our primary school students suffer from malnutrition. This project also has a health component," he added.
Rohingya children living in Cox's Bazar and Bhasan Char will also be included in the project.
Additionally, 6,099 teachers from 1,095 government primary schools will receive skill-building training as part of the project.
Professor Dr Md Abdus Salam, from the Institute of Education and Research at Dhaka University, called the school feeding program a timely initiative, emphasizing that it would ensure proper nutrition for schoolchildren.
