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Session Submission Summary

McGovern Dole Food for Education in Mozambique: successes and lessons learned

Thu, April 18, 1:30 to 3:00pm, Hyatt Regency, Floor: Pacific Concourse (Level -1), Pacific M

Group Submission Type: Formal Panel Session

Proposal

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program helps support education, improve literacy, and increase nutrition in low-income, food-deficit countries around the globe through the donation of U.S. agricultural commodities, as well as financial and technical assistance, to support school feeding projects. By providing school meals, teacher training, and related support, McGovern-Dole projects help boost school enrollment and academic performance. At the same time, the program also focuses on improving children’s health and learning capacity through the nutritious meal and nutrition and health education. USDA will guide presenters in reflecting on the importance of continuous improvements of programming through exchange of lessons learned, with an emphasis on sustained outcomes.

Two such McGovern-Dole projects are currently taking place in Mozambique: one in Maputo Province led by Planet Aid, and one in Nampula Province led by World Vision. Underpinning the vast array of activities undertaken by both projects, including the provision of school meals, is a focus on improving early grade literacy outcomes. This focus on literacy education has been reinforced by a memorandum of understanding signed between USDA and USAID, coupled with extensive governmental stakeholder involvement in Mozambique. In particular, active participation and collaboration from the Ministry of Education and Human Development (MINEDH) in Mozambique has been pivotal to both program’s continued ability to emphasize improved literacy outcomes in their work.

Four presentations by USDA and implementing partners will highlight the achievements of these McGovern-Dole programs to date in Mozambique. The second presentation will provide an overview of the Planet Aid program implemented in Maputo Province, describing the achievements to date in school agriculture, health and nutrition, sanitation, infrastructure, and teacher training, among others, with a reflection on which elements have already promoted sustainability and what challenges still remain. The third presentation will take a deeper dive into the literacy component of this same program in Maputo Province, examining the results of two early grade reading termly assessments conducted in 2018 for students in Grades 1 and 2, and the lessons learned in the process of implementing these assessments. The fourth presentation will present World Vision’s program implementation in Nampula Province, with a focus on the diverse community actors that are engaged to promote improved literacy results, and the ways in which their commitment supports lasting outcomes.

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