Mozambique School Lunch Initiative

The Mozambique School Lunch Initiative addresses the intertwined problems of child malnutrition and poor school participation. In Mozambique, almost half of children are chronically malnourished. When children grow up hungry, not only does this take a physical toll, it also affects their ability to participate in school. In Mozambique, 60 percent of children drop out of school by grade 5 and many more struggle with regular attendance (up to 60 percent truancy rates) due to hunger.

The Mozambique School Lunch Initiative (MSLI) invests in community-owned school lunch programs, providing nutritious meals and stimulating local agricultural development. Our program invests in training and improved inputs (like seeds and small-scale irrigation equipment) for local farmers to increase their production. This creates a local supply chain that can support the school lunch program's needs while also benefiting farmers and tackling the root challenges of hunger and malnutrition.

Lives impacted: 1700. Developed local agricultural supply chains. Reduced procurement costs for school lunch programs. Increased school attendance and participation.