The accelerator, which gets off the ground with more than US$80 million from the four founding partners with additional support from France and the Global Partnership for Education, will connect countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean with technical assistance to strengthen and scale national school meal programmes.
By pooling resources and expertise, the four founding partners seek to unlock the full potential of national school feeding programmes to combat hunger and poverty, while strengthening food and nutrition security around the world.
Rania Dagash-Kamara, assistant executive director partnerships and innovation of the World Food Programme (WFP), commented: “Governments are leading an unprecedented transformation in school meal programmes. The Accelerator supports that ambition—working alongside WFP and other partners to help countries turn their commitments into sustainable systems that support children and communities and strengthen education and food security."
The accelerator was born out of the School Meals Coalition, a network of more than 110 Governments and over 150 non-profit, philanthropic, and research partners, hosted by WFP as its Secretariat, working to prioritise school meals as a strategic investment.