The Joy Schools program of snacks company Mondelez Philippines is marking its 10th anniversary this year.
The decade-long community outreach initiative has since reached 5,378 children through a 9-month feeding program and 19 schools nationwide for at least 2-years of adoption.
It has achieved 10,800 volunteer hours through company employees and has touched the lives of 24,739 students through various other intervention programs.
“The Joy Schools is our flagship community program in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia.
Through it we aim to provide interventions on nutrition and active play, to promote the well-being of our adopted students. More importantly, we aim to help level the playing field for public elementary students, so that they receive nutrition and support that equip them for a brighter future,” said Joseph Fabul, Corporate and Government Affairs Country Manager of Mondelez Philippines.
“These programs could not have been possible or successful without the collaboration of the schools we adopted and their teachers. They implement and monitor our feeding program, and they make the most of the sports equipment, laptops, and WIFI devices we provide for the students. While we have invested as much as P40 million in the program in the past decade; the time, passion, and energy of our schools and teachers have contributed much more to its success,” he added.
Of the 19 schools that have been adopted by the Joy Schools, three were recognized during a ceremony held with long-time program partner, the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), and the Department of Education – Parañaque Division.
The awarded schools were P. Zamora Elementary School in Pasay City, Balara Elementary School in Quezon City, and Don Galo Elementary School in Parañaque City.
“As Mondelez Philippines’ partner in the Joy Schools implementation these many years, we supported them in identifying schools who have not only implemented the program well but made the most of the resources provided to them to extend and strengthen their impact,” said Elvin Ivan Uy, PBSP executive director.
“For Padre Zamora we saw how they made the most of the vegetable garden materials and learning given to them to supplement their school feeding program. For Balara Elementary and Don Galo Elementary, it was their ability to ensure the feeding program continued despite the pandemic. From a previous daily feeding in school, they were able to efficiently implement the new weekly pick-up of vegetable kits by parents of the students. For these reasons, we are honored to call these schools our partners in the Joy Schools program with Mondelez Philippines,” he added.
The Joy Schools program continues to make an impact today by adopting three public elementary schools. Starting this month, the program will commence a weekly vegetable pack distribution for 300 students and their families. These aim to provide good nutrition to support students’ education and ease the burden of hunger for families affected by the pandemic. For more information about the Joy Schools program, click here.