Country Highlight: Egypt

GCNF recently conducted a Country Policy and Funding Mechanism Study funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  The study’s purpose was to examine successful school feeding programs in middle income countries, as defined by the World Bank, that are nationally-owned and operated.  Responding to various criteria, including geographic diversity among all countries studied and government policies and funding mechanisms to support the program, Malaysia, Jordan, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa were selected. Case studies on Chile and Mali were also included. In addition to locating data and statistics available online, GCNF conducted telephone interviews with each country’s main contact to fully understand the inner workings of their school feeding program.  By developing a comprehensive questionnaire that addressed each program’s key components (i.e., institutional and policy frameworks; procurement; funding; and community participation), the interactive dialogues provided information not readily available otherwise.  GCNF President Gene White worked with SNA Past President Donna Wittrock and former USDA deputy Alberta Frost on this project.This study may help other countries use previously tested policies and funding mechanisms for future program development.  It is GCNF’s intention that this study be a guide for those countries transitioning to country-owned and operated school feeding programs.  GCNF will be sharing the results from these conversations and each month Insider International will be spotlighting a different country’s school feeding program.

This month Insider will be highlighting Egypt.  The GCNF volunteer assessment team spoke with Mr. Ahmed Abd El Hlim Salem, Director General, School Feeding Department, Ministry of Education.  Ms. Mona Karraoui, Food for Development Manager, Tetra Pak Egypt Ltd., and Mr. Zeyad Mourad, Marketing Manager Dairy Category, Tetra Pak Egypt Ltd., also participated in this interview.  Here are some interesting facts about Egypt’s school feeding program:

• Currently 30 percent of the total student population, or 5 million students, participate in Egypt’s school feeding program.  Egypt’s Ministry of Education uses a “poverty map” to determine which students receive school meals.
• Egypt’s school feeding program was established in 1951, after government subsidies became available to support school feeding.  Before this, there was a school milk program and school meals were available for purchase by students.
• The World Food Programme (WFP) provided external aide after Egypt had established a national school feeding program.  WFP first piloted a milk program in Egypt from 2005-2006 before committing to its current operation (2007-2011).
• Tetra Pak Egypt Ltd. was established in 1981 and remains heavily involved in school feeding efforts.  It currently operates a flavored milk program in each of the country’s 27 governorates, or local administrative divisions.  Strict tender specifications are in place and pre-schoolers and primary school children are the main targets.
• In addition to milk, biscuits and “sweet pies” are distributed to students.  The biscuits and pies are considered snacks and are served instead of a complete lunch.  Milk and biscuits are typically targeted toward younger children, while the more substantial sweet pies are targeted toward the older students.
• While the Ministry of Education is responsible for Egypt’s school feeding program, its operation is essentially inter-ministerial since it collaborates with the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Industry.
• The Ministry of Education sets main program policies at the national level and the local governorates then administer the programs.
• Article 18 of Egypt’s 1971 Constitution provides for the basic primary education for all; a national policy requires school feeding in Egypt.
• Although food products used in Egyptian school meals come from local farms, there is no written policy that mandates the local procurement of food.  There is also no program objective to directly benefit local farmers.
• The current program budget is US$60 million.  School feeding funds are reflected as a single line item in the national budget.
• The primary source of funding for Egypt’s school feeding program comes from the federal government.  In addition, WFP receives partial funding from the countries of Cypress and Italy to support its operation in Egypt.
• A recent decentralization means that each governorate receives funds according to the specific budget determined by the governorate’s total number of enrolled students.
• The five target goals currently guiding Egypt’s feeding program are: (1) government commitment and political will; (2) institutional capacity; (3) community commitment and resource utilization; (4) program design and implementation; and (5) program monitoring and evaluation.  Of these, community commitment is the country’s most urgent need.

This study is also housed on GCNF’s website, where it may be viewed in its entirety.  Please direct all questions or comments to GCNF Project Manager Erica Davies at edavies@schoolnutrition.org