In January 2020, the World Food Programme (WFP) launched
its new strategy in support of school health and nutrition
for the school children of the world. One month later
COVID-19 emerged and within weeks became a pandemic that
led to 1.6 billion school children being excluded from
schools globally by March 2020. School health and
nutrition were always important for the growth and
development of school children, but in this new COVID
world they are even more important. This is a call to
action: for governments, partners and WFP staff to help
countries now to maintain care and support for the
out-of-school children, and next to use school health and
nutrition programmes as a key incentive for families to
send their children back to school, and to build back
schools better.
