On 16 January, at the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture in Berlin, Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Novo Nordisk Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, and the World Food Programme (WFP) launched the School Meals Accelerator Initiative.
Developed under the School Meals Coalition, the Accelerator aims to help governments fund the right partners and deliver practical support where it is most needed. Its mission is to unlock the full potential of school meal programmes worldwide by improving design, scaling interventions, and strengthening collaboration across education, health, and food systems.
The initiative will link countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean with technical assistance to strengthen and expand national school meal programmes. By pooling resources and expertise, the four founding partners seek to boost national school feeding efforts to fight hunger and poverty while improving global food and nutrition security.
School meals have become a global policy priority. Since 2020, funding for school meal programmes has nearly doubled, rising from $43 billion to $84 billion a year. Today, 99 percent of this funding comes from domestic budgets.
To date, the School Meals Coalition has reached more than 466 million children worldwide. The Accelerator builds on this progress by offering targeted technical assistance to improve and scale government programmes. Its goal is to reach an additional 100 million children by 2030. It does so by bringing together governments, non-profit, and philanthropic partners to embed school meal programmes into broader development strategies, turning them into drivers of systemic change rather than isolated interventions. The initiative pools expertise, resources, and innovation to foster cross-sector collaboration, accelerate implementation, and strengthen national capacity. It also prioritizes demand-driven support so that assistance reflects each country’s specific needs and context.
Turning Commitments Into Sustainable Systems
During the session, speakers reaffirmed their commitment to the Initiative and emphasized the critical role of school meals in advancing food security and sustainability.
“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.”
- Rania Dagash-Kamara, Assistant Executive Director Partnerships and Innovation of the World Food Programme
“School meals are more than just a plate of food. They are a significant game changer in our global fight for better education, empowerment, health and for a better future together.”
- Reem Alabali Radovan, Germany Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development
Through this initiative, Germany is backing a new model that responds to growing government demand to expand home-grown school meals and integrate them into wider food systems transformation strategies, promoting equity and resilience.
“School meals are one of the most powerful and underleveraged investments in development. The Accelerator will help countries unlock the full potential of national school feeding programmes for their communities – turning political commitment into sustainable systems that nourish children, support farmers, and strengthen food and nutrition security. The Rockefeller Foundation is proud to support this effort as part of our $100 million commitment to regenerative school meals.“
- Elizabeth Yee, Executive Vice President of Programs at The Rockefeller Foundation
SchoolFood4Change couldn’t agree more. School meals have proven to be vital drivers of international food security for children. The Accelerator will undoubtedly benefit those who previously lacked access to feeding programs, and we can’t wait to see it in action. Bravo!