114 OG No.

29, 4988 (July 16, 2018); Business Mirror, July 5, 2018

[ REPUBLIC ACT NO. 11037, June 20, 2018 ]

AN ACT INSTITUTIONALIZING A NATIONAL FEEDING
PROGRAM FOR UNDERNOURISHED CHILDREN IN PUBLIC DAY
CARE, KINDERGARTEN AND ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS TO
COMBAT HUNGER AND UNDERNUTRITION AMONG FILIPINO
CHILDREN AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress

assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. . This Act shall be known as "Masustansyang Pagkam para sa
Batang Filipino Act",

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State recognizes the vital role of the youth in nation-
building and shall promote and protect their physical, moral spiritual, intellectual, and
social well-being. In recognition of the demonstrated relationship between food and
nutrition, and the capacity of students to develop and learn, the State shall establish a
comprehensive national feeding program that will address the problem of undernutrition
among Filipino children.

SEC. 3. Definition of Terms.- As used in this Act, the following terms shall be understood
to mean as follows, to wit:

(a) Cycle Menu refers to standardized menus prepared by the national government
agencies (NGAs), in coordination with the National Nutrition Council (NNC) and the
Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), which shall be contextualized and drawn
up, among others, according to age range, location and/or type of school, and local cultural
and/or religious eating preferences: Provided, That such menus shall have as many
varieties and selections as may be necessary taking into account its availability in the place
or locality where the day care center or school is located;

(b) Fortified Meal refers to a meal with deliberately increased content of essential
micronutrients so as to improve the nutritional quality of the food and provide the level of
calories and protein as prescribed by the NNC which shall consist of at least one-third
(1/3) of the daily requirement based on the Philippine Dietary Reference Intake (PDRI)

(c) Health Examination refers to the examination conducted by NGAs, in coordination

with the Department of Health (DOH) and local government units (LGUs) concerned, on
the overall condition of the program beneficiary which shall, among others, include the
program beneficiary's height, weight and other ailments, defects or deformities that may
need special care or treatment;
(d) National Government Agencies (NGAs) refer to the Department of Education (DepED)
and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) which shall be the lead
agencies in the implementation of the program for public kindergarten and elementary
schools and public day care centers, respectively; and

(e) Undernourished Child refers to a child who has been supplied with less than the
minimum amount of foods essential for sound health and growth. For purposes of this Act,
it shall include children who are suffering from chronic hunger and malnutrition as well as
those who are considered as wasted, severely wasted or stunted under the World Health
Organization Child Growth Standards.

SEC. 4. National Feeding Program.- The National Feeding Program, hereinafter referred
to as the Program, is hereby established to address undernutrition among Filipino children.

The Program shall have the following components and coverage:

(a) Supplemental Feeding Program for Day Care Children.- The DSWD, in coordination
with the LGUs concerned, shall implement a supplemental feeding program for
undernourished children with ages three (3) to five (5) years. The Program shall be
administered in day care centers or in any other facility which an be used for such
purpose: Provided, That the Program shall include the provision of at least one (1) fortified
meal for a period of not less than one hundred twenty (120) days in a year: Provided,
further, That in the preparation of fortified meals, the DSWD shall work in collaboration
with recognized parents' organizations;

(b) School-Based Feeding Program.-The DepED shall implement a school-based feeding

program for undernourished public school children from kindergarten to grade six (6):
Provided, That the Program shall include the provision of at least one (1) fortified meal to
all undernourished public elementary school children for a period of not less than one
hundred twenty (120) days in a year;

(c) Milk Feeding Program.- The NGAs shall coordinate with the Department of
Agriculture (DA), the National Dairy Authority, the Philippine Carabao Center and the
Cooperative Development Authority for the incorporation of fresh milk and fresh milk-
based food products in the fortified meals and cycle menu in accordance with Republic
Act No. 8172, otherwise known as the "Philippine Food Fortifiction Act of 2000",
utilizing, as far as practicable, locally produced milk in order to enhance its nutritional
content and, at the same time, help boost livelihood opportunities for local dairy farmers
and the local dairy industry;

(d) Micronutrient Supplements.- The NGAs, in coordination with the DOH, shall provide
micronutrient supplements to the Program beneficiaries including the use of iodized salt in
accordance with Republic Act No. 8172, otherwise known as the "Salt Iodization or
ASIN" law;

(e) Health Examination, Vaccination and Deworming.- The NGAs in coordination with the
DOH and LGUs concerned, shall conduct simultaneous health examinations, including,
but not limited to, deworming and vaccination, as the case may be, to Program
beneficiaries;
(f) Gulayan sa Paaralan.- The NGAs shall encourage their respective component units to
devote a portion of their land or space for the cultivation of vegetables and other nutrient-
rich plants as identified by the NNC: Provided, That component units lacking in land shall
adopt modern gardening technologies with the assistance of the DA, the Department of
Science and Technology (DOST) and the city or municipal agricultural officers. Parents
shall also be encouraged to maintain a similar program in their own backyards;

(g) Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH).- The NGAs, in coordination with the DOH
and LGUs, shall establish and maintain water and sanitation facilities, promote good
hygiene and safe food preparation in all of its component units especially in areas devoted
for the preparation of fortified meals under the Program; and

(h) Integrated Nutrition Education, Behavioral Transformation, and Social Mobilization.-

The Program shall be complemented by a public health, nutrition, and values
transformation campaign to promote a holistic and integrated approach to health and
nutrition education. Orientation-training on the objectives and mechanics of the Program
shall be held among personnel of NGAs and LGUs concerned, parent volunteers and the
parent-teachers associations (PTAs) to generate support for the Program. The NGAs
concerned shall also endeavor to mobilize community organizations to continue nutrition
education outside of the school.

SEC. 5. Prioritization in the Program Implementation.- The NGAs shall create a five (5)-
year plan to fully implement the Program: Provided, That the NGAs concerned shall
prioritize the implementation of the Program in the LGUs and public day care or
elementary schools that meet any of the following criteria:

(a) With the highest prevalence of undernutrition and nutrient-deficiency among children
aged three (3) years up to grade six (6) level;

(b) With available facilities or capability to implement the Program; or

(c) Which prioritize such Program in their locality and are willing to provide counterpart
resources for its implementation.

SEC. 6. Creation of a National Nutrition Information System.-The NNC shall harmonize

all existing national and local nutrition databases from NGAs, LGUs and other relevant
agencies of government in order to identify individuals, groups/or localities that have the
highest magnitude of hunger and undernutrition. This system shall henceforthbe utilized in
monitoring the health and nutrition of all Filipino children, especially those covered by the
Program.

SEC. 7. Local Government Assistance.- LGUs shall assist the NGAs in the efficient and
effective implementation of the Program in accordance with Section 4 of this Act and shall
be authorized to use a portion of the Special Education Fund (SEF) and/or their twenty
percent (20%) development fund as provided for in Republic Act No. 7160, otherwise
known as the "Local Government Code of 1991", as amended, to augment the
appropriations available under the General Appropriations Act (GAA).

SEC. 8. Private Sector Participation.- The NGAs shall encourage the participation of the
private sector in the Program which shall include among others, PTAs, private
corporations, peoples and nongovernment organizations and such other groups or
organizations, both foreign and local, that may want to be partner in whole or in part with
the implementation of the Program.

SEC. 9. Monitoring and Annual Report.- The NGAs, in coordination with the LGUs, the
NNC and other stakeholders, shall regularly monitor, review and assess ythe impact and
effectivity of the Program as well as ensure compliance with the standars and guidelines of
the Program for food safety, quality, accountability, community participation and the
procurement and liquidation processes adopted.. For this purpose, the NGAs shallprepare
and submit an annual report of the status of the implementation of the Program to the
Office of the President and both Houses of Congress.

SEC. 10. Tax exemption.- Any donation or bequest made to the NGAs or any of the
aforementioned government agencies including LGUs for the Program shall be exempt
from donor's tax: Provided, That donations in kind shall be approved by the NGAs
concerned upon the recommendation of the NNC, in the case of food products, and the
DOH, in the case of vaccine and supplements, as the case may be, respectively.

SEC. 11. Appropriations.- The amount necessary to carry out the initial implementation of
this Act shall be sourced from the current appropriations of the NGAs. Thereafter, such
sums as may be necessary for the continuous implementation of this Act shall be included
in the annual GAA under the respective budgets of the NGAs.

SEC. 12. Procurement of Goods and Services.- The Department of Budget and
Management, Government Procurement Policy Board, and the Commission on Audit, in
consultation with the NGAs, are hereby mandated to specifically establish and promulgate
a community-based mode of procurement, liquidation and audit that will ensure the
efficient and effective implementation of the Program: Provided, That this provision shall
apply solely to the implementation of the Program by the NGAs and LGUs concerned.

SEC. 13. Implementing Rules and Regulations.- Within ninety (90) days from the
effectivity of this Act, the NGAs, in consultation with the NNC, the FNRI, the DOH, the
DA, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and concerned LGUs,
and such other relevant government agencies, nongovernment organizations, and
development partners shall promulgate their respective rules and regulations for the
efficient and effective implementation of this Act.

SEC. 14. Separability Clause.- If any provision or part hereof is held invalid or
unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall
remain valid and subsisting.

SEC. 15. Repealing Clause.- All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations or other
issuances or parts inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or
modified accordingly.

SEC. 16. Effectivity.- This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the
Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,
 (SGD.) PANTALEON D. ALVAREZ (SGD.) AQUILINO "KOKO" PIMENTEL
Speaker of the House III
of Representatives President of the Senate

This Act which is a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 1279 and House Bill No. 5269 was
passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on March 20, 2018.

(SGD.) CESAR STRAIT PAREJA (SGD.) LUTGARDO B. BARBO

Secretary General Secretary of the Senate
House of Representatives

Approved: JUN 20 2018

(SGD.) RODRIGO ROA DUTERTE

President of the Philippines

Source: Supreme Court E-Library

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