1. Assessing Budget Credibility: Paraguay Food Program for School (PAEP)
- Author:
- Fernando Ovando and Verónica Serafini
- Publication Date:
- 04-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Centro de Análisis y Difusión de la Economía Paraguaya (CADEP)
- Abstract:
- Budget credibility refers to the capacity of governments to fully execute resources allocated through the national budget, in terms of expenditures and revenues. When this execution is not accomplished, there should be valid arguments for explaining this limitation. A budget credibility exercise examines the nature and degrees of diversion of resources allocated by national budgets as well as the causes and consequences of this diversion. The case of budget credibility in Paraguay presented here refers to a public program that helps children performance at schools. The Paraguay Food Program for School (PAEP) was created by law in 2014, replacing another program of Nutritional Supplement for School, in force since 1995. The purpose of PAEP is to meet nutritional needs of students in order to create good nutrition habits, healthy lifestyle and to improve school attendance and school performance. Two modalities are adopted in order to provide food to schools: i) food prepared at schools; ii) food provided by local and national suppliers. PAEP is directed to public schools, both primary and secondary. It aims to provide food baskets to students on regular basis for the whole academic year. Priorities are given to schools located in zones of extreme poverty, indigenous settlements, peasant colonies, schools located at hazardous districts and those with double schooling (shifts) The Central Government implements this program for the Capital (Asuncion), through the Ministry of Education. While local governments (governorships) are in charge of implementing the program for different regions (departments) and districts (municipalities) of the rest of the country.
- Topic:
- Education, Budget, Public Spending, and Schools
- Political Geography:
- South America and Paraguay