The Supplementary Feeding Program (SFP) is a program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) that provides supplementary food to children enrolled in daycare centers. The aim of the program is to contribute to the Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) program of the government.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) started the supplementary feeding program in response to the escalating malnutrition problems in the Philippines. The program provides support through a daily feeding program for children enrolled in a day care centers.
Children enrolled in daycare centers, parents, and caregivers can benefit from the feeding program by improving their nutrition and health knowledge, attitudes, and practices. It also seeks to improve and sustain the nutritional status of all target children and refer them to health units for medical and nutrition-related problems of children.
The SFP consists of the three components: food supplements, nutrition education, and health services. The food supplement is provided in the form of rice or corn-soya blend, fortified with vitamins and minerals. A minimum of five (5) and a maximum of seven (7) days a week for 120 days, children will receive the food supplements in the form of hot meals and alternate meals during snack or lunchtime.
The nutrition education component aims to develop the knowledge and skills of caregivers in preparing nutritious meals for children. It also promotes breastfeeding and complementary feeding. The health services component provides deworming services and monthly monitoring of the growth and development of participating children.
OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAM
The specific objectives of the supplementary feeding program are as follows:
- To provide augmentation support through a daily feeding program for children in a day care centers.
- Through intensified nutrition and health education, children enrolled in daycare centers, their parents, and caregivers can improve their knowledge, attitudes, and practices.
- To improve and sustain the nutritional status of all target children and refer to health units medical and nutrition related problems of children.
TARGET BENEFICIARIES OF THE PROGRAM
The following are the target beneficiaries of DSWD’s supplementary feeding program:
malnourished preschoolers aged 3-5 years old
children at risk of becoming malnourished or those who are underweight for their age but are not yet malnourished as identified by Local government officials/staff, health workers or teachers
Caregivers or parents/primary guardians must give consent for their child/ward to participate in the program
Once a child is deemed eligible for participation in the program by a health worker or LGU staff, he/she shall be included in the list of enrollees submitted by the Day Care Worker (DCW) to the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Officer (MSWDO). He / She shall be given a Supplementary Feeding Identification Card (SFIC) which must be presented every time he/she avail of meals under the program.
if a child’s nutritional status improves such that he/she is no longer malnourished or at risk of malnutrition as per assessment done by health workers, his/her name shall be dropped from the list.