"Masaya po ako kasi may bigas na kami mamaya sa bahay. Yung pambili ni Mama ng bigas ay maidadagdag na rin sa ulam naming magkakapatid," she beams.

Jenny is one of the 2,157 Grade 1 pupils of Commonwealth Elementary School (CES) who received an early Christmas gift yesterday when the Department of Education (DepEd) and other government agencies re-launched its feeding program. This year’s theme is Food for School Program "Bigas para sa Mag-aaral at Pamilya."

The rice subsidy, which will run for 90-days or three months, will give free rice to school children and their families. Their parents will also get free livelihood training to be conducted by the Departments of Agriculture and Education and other support organizations.

"This is a development-oriented program. This is not only about rationing food to the kids but also encouraging their families to be responsible people. In that way, they can help the government alleviate poverty," Education Undersecretary Fe Hidalgo said.

The re-launch was fueled by the 2005 report of Social Weather Stations (SWS) which showed that 15.5 percent of Filipino families experienced hunger at least once in the previous three months. The problem was higher in Luzon at 18 percent, followed by National Capital Region at 16.7 percent, Visayas at 13.3 percent and Mindanao at 12.0 percent.

The same survey showed that 27 out of 100 (estimated 2.49 million children) 6-10 years old children are underweight for their age, and 36 out of 100 (estimated 3.41 million children) 6-10 years old children are short for their age.

A DepEd report showed that the drop-out rates are high at 15 percent among Grades 1 and 2 pupils. High drop out is linked to malnutrition and hunger.

National Nutrition Council (NNC) Director Elsa Bayani said nutritional decline in disadvantaged young learners and their families could be saved. Since the children will be motivated to report to school, said Bayani, drop-out rates will also be minimized and student’s academic performance improved.

"...We are targeting Grade One pupils because the first seven years are crucial for long-term development. Many of learning disadvantages that afflict kids are the result of inadequate early child care," she said.

Bayani said that addressing hunger also means addressing its root cause through development based interventions. The livelihood activities which the parents will avail, she added will contribute to long term solutions of hunger in the country.

The food for school program targets 55 provinces this year with priority given to vulnerable areas or the 5th and 6th class municipalities, and those with the highest enrollment. CES has the highest Grade 1 enrollment nationwide.