To:     Bureau Directors
Regional Directors
Schools Division Superintendents
Heads, Public Elementary Schools
All Others Concerned

1. The Department of Education (DepEd), through the Health and Nutrition Center (HNC), shall implement the School-Based Feeding Program (SBFP) for School Year (SY) 2015-2016 to address undernutrition and short-term hunger among public school children.
2. Primarily, the SBFP will cover 532,752 severely wasted (SW) and 627,403 wasted (W) pupils from Kindergarten to Grade 6 for SY 2015-2016. At least 80% of the beneficiaries are targeted to be rehabilitated to normal nutritional status at the end of 120 feeding days. Secondarily, it aims to increase classroom attendance from 85% to 100% and to improve the school children’s health and nutrition values and behavior.
3. School heads (SHs) are expected to monitor the feeding activities and program implementation on a daily basis. The Schools Division Technical Working Group (SDTWG) is expected to monitor the schools’ compliance with the guidelines, procurement process, health and nutritional assessment, and the conduct of complementary activities, such as deworming, food production, waste segregation and composting, integration of Essential Health Care Program (EHCP), good grooming and personal hygiene, and productivity, life, and values development training. The Regional Technical Working Group (RTWG) is expected to monitor the activities of the schools division offices (SDOs), including the timely release of funds to the SHs, progress of implementation, liquidation of funds, and submission of reports.
4. All schools shall establish and maintain the Gulayan sa Paaralan Program (GPP) as a source of ingredients for the SBFP and shall encourage families of beneficiaries to have their own home gardens so that nutritional improvement is maintained at home. The school GPP coordinator may ask their local agriculture officials to provide them with training and seedlings for their home gardens.
5. The schools implementing the SBFP are required to submit their respective terminal reports through the heads of RTWG and SDTWG to the Health and Nutrition Center, Department of Education Central Office (DepEd CO), DepEd Complex, Meralco Avenue, Pasig City.
6. All regional directors (RDs), schools division superintendents (SDSs), and SHs are enjoined to extend full administrative support to the management of the SBFP.
7. The Operational Guidelines on the Implementation of the SBFP for SY 2015-2016 are enclosed for reference.
8. Immediate dissemination of and strict compliance with this Order is directed.

(Sgd.) BR. ARMIN A. LUISTRO FSC
Secretary

Encl.: As stated

Reference: DepEd Order No.: 37, s. 2014

To be indicated in the Perpetual Index under the following subjects: