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Ref. Ares(2018)3414778 - 27/06/2018
Ref. Ares(2018)4147635 - 07/08/2018
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Monthly Update on Milk in WFP Syria’s School Meal Programme
May 2017
1. Background
WFP Syria has been implementing a school meals programme since 2014, and it has
gradually been scaled up in different parts of the country. The assistance has traditionally
consisted of providing a fortified date bar to children in supported schools, which were
selected based on a high prevalence of food insecurity, high number of IDPs and low
education indicators.
In 2016, the European Commission made a contribution to WFP’s school meal programme
in Syria that allows WFP to procure 17,500 mt of UHT milk produced in the EU. The milk will
be used in combination with fortified date bars, and will be distributed across two academic
years (2016-17 and 2017-18) to children in schools across Syria.
Each child will receive 200 ml of UHT milk (120 kcal), as well as 80 gram of fortified date bars
(340 kcal), bringing the total kcal delivery to almost 500 kcal; 30 percent of the daily energy
requirement for school children. To ensure delivery of a comprehensive assistance, WFP
targets schools already assisted by UNICEF through trainings, teaching material and school
supplies.
In January 2017, WFP made the decision to include a quantity of the procured milk into the
general food assistance (GFA) programme targeting children from 5 to 12 years of age. This
decision was necessitated by operational factors mainly linked to the short shelf life of the
milk. Following a modification request in March 2017, WFP and ECHO agreed that the
amount of milk reallocated to GFA will not exceed a total of ten percent, or five percent per
each academic year, of the total milk tonnage to be procured and distributed under this
action (17,500 mt). Any milk reallocated to the GFA programme will be distributed in areas
with a high concentration of IDPs and may also be used for inter-agency convoys to hard-to-
reach and besieged areas. There are currently no plans to distribute milk in areas covered by
cross-border operations from Jordan and Turkey.
2. General Accomplishments
Schools in Syria were closed after the first week of May, during which only exams were held
and no classes took place.
Accordingly, during the month of May, WFP dispatched no milk to schools under WFP’s
school feeding programme. Furthermore, no milk was distributed under the GFA
programme in May.
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In total, 4,829.69 MT of milk has been dispatched since the beginning of the programme in
late 2016, of which 4,346.993 MT has been dispatched under the School Feeding
programme and 482.697 MT under the GFA programme.
Dispatches of Milk in May
Dispatched to Schools
Allocated to GFA
Quantity of milk dispatched
in May
0
0
Number of children
benefitting from the
dispatched milk in May
0
0
Cumulative quantity
dispatched since the
beginning of the programme
4,346.993 MT
482.697 MT
2. Challenges
Bureaucratic hurdles remained a challenge during the month of May. WFP was awaiting
approval to dispose the last quantity of 0.668 MT of milk (one pallet) as the shelf life had
expired by the time the quantity was cleared by the authorities. WFP received the written
approval on 04 June and the quantity will be disposed in the coming weeks.
3. Any Other Updates
Schools are closed from the second week of May until September 2017, when the new
academic year 2017-2018 will start.