Nearly a quarter million school children in Yemen, Bolivia, and Madagascar will be cared for by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) as part of the first international school lunch program initiated by the United States government.

ADRA was named among 14 private volunteer organizations designated as recipients of an ambitious international school lunch program that will distribute $300 million worth of food supplied by the United States Department of Agriculture. The program aims to feed some 9 million children in 38 countries. School children are to receive nutritious meals every day for a year, and the “Global Food for Education” program will keep them in school.

At the launch of the program on December 28, 2000, United States President Bill Clinton said that “this initiative by itself is not a solution to the global hunger problem. But it’s a down payment and a beginning.”

“Children need good food in order to be alert in school,” states Ralph S. Watts, Jr., president of ADRA International. “This grant utilizes ADRA’s years of experience in development projects to make a difference in hungry children’s lives.”