[{"bbox": [146, 151, 1083, 312], "category": "Text", "text": "While enrolment at primary education level has been increasing steadily (except for a dip in 2020/2021 likely due to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic) there is still a portion of children not accessing primary education evidenced by the net enrolment rate of 90 percent. Furthermore, the primary school completion is only 50 percent (for both boys and girls).³ Leaving aside the effects of COVID-19 on dropouts for the year 2021, the overall main causes of dropout are poverty, family responsibilities, sickness, pregnancy, poor school facilities (especially for girls) and early marriages.⁴"}, {"bbox": [146, 321, 1083, 483], "category": "Text", "text": "On academic performance, level of repetition in Malawi primary education system is high, at an average of 21 percent⁵, which can be linked to undernutrition. According to the Cost of Hunger in Africa study, pupils in Malawi who were stunted before the age of five are more likely to underperform in school, with 18 percent of school repetitions as a result of undernutrition. Furthermore, according to a National School Health and Nutrition Baseline Survey, and Tsolata I baseline study (2020), most Malawian children do not eat breakfast before school, which means that they have to learn on an empty stomach."}, {"bbox": [146, 493, 1083, 627], "category": "Text", "text": "Despite the political commitments towards universal school meals across all education levels, school meals remain structurally underfunded and dependent on external support. Government annual financial allocation for school meals is on average EUR 106 000 or 0.03% of the total education budget⁶. This covers a very limited number of primary schools for just part of the academic year (generally only lean season months)."}, {"bbox": [146, 638, 1016, 693], "category": "Section-header", "text": "**Identification of main stakeholders and corresponding institutional and/or organisational issues (mandates, potential roles, and capacities) to be covered by the Action:**"}, {"bbox": [146, 704, 1083, 760], "category": "Text", "text": "The main stakeholders of the Action comprise International Organisations, key Government Ministries, pre-school and primary school learners, and Farmers organisations as described below."}, {"bbox": [146, 770, 1083, 984], "category": "Text", "text": "**Ministry of Education – Department of School Health and Nutrition and HIV/AIDS (DSHNHA),** responsible for the coordination and management of school meals programmes at national and district level. The Ministry facilitates coordination among key stakeholders to promote networking, information sharing and learning and policy coherence as school meals programme in the country is implemented by a number of actors, in support of the government’s efforts. The Government of Malawi, through the Ministry of Education, implements a community-based homegrown programme whereby communities are assisted with agriculture inputs for cultivation of crops on school or community land for the school meals programme."}, {"bbox": [146, 994, 1083, 1180], "category": "Text", "text": "**Ministry of Health – Department of Nutrition, HIV and AIDS (DNHA).** The Ministry of Health remains a key stakeholder for providing technical support and overall policy direction and coordination of nutrition interventions (including school nutrition interventions) as per the institutional and policy set up in Malawi. In addition, the Ministry of Health provides complementary activities such as deworming, vitamin A supplementation and water, hygiene and sanitation services. Principal Nutrition and HIV/AIDS Officers (PNHAO) and the District Nutrition Coordination Committees (DNCCs) to ensure coordination of nutrition interventions at District level."}, {"bbox": [146, 1192, 1083, 1326], "category": "Text", "text": "**Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare.** The Ministry has the responsibility for ECD centres. At national level, the Ministry ensure coherent implementation of actions targeting children 3-5 years, and at district level, through district social welfare offices, it oversee implementation and monitoring of ECD activities in pre-schools (community-based child-care centres - CBCCs), including ECD quality, standards and transition issues."}, {"bbox": [146, 1337, 1083, 1446], "category": "Text", "text": "**Ministry of Agriculture – through the District Agriculture Extension Services system (DAESS),** to provide technical assistance and training to farmers, with a strong focus on technology transfers, promoting climate change adaptation practices and nutrition-sensitive production, prioritising the productive role and empowerment of women. The Ministry will support with identification and capacity"}, {"bbox": [146, 1494, 749, 1517], "category": "Footnote", "text": "³ Ministry of Education – The 2020/2021 Education Sector Performance Report."}, {"bbox": [146, 1518, 216, 1538], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁴ Ibidem."}, {"bbox": [146, 1540, 645, 1564], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁵ 2021, Malawi Education Statistics Report, Ministry of Education."}, {"bbox": [146, 1565, 1051, 1589], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁶ Based on 2019/2020 Education sector allocation of MK 292 billion (2019/2020 Education Sector Performance Report)."}, {"bbox": [976, 1680, 1083, 1706], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 6 of 26"}]