In line with government priorities to support rural development and national agriculture, WFP continued to connect its school feeding programme with local markets and producers. While schools were closed for five months due to COVID-19, WFP with support from its cooperating partners, collected the food stocks available in schools and distributed take-home rations to 90,000 families of schoolchildren. Schools reopened on 17 August and the 2020-2021 academic year began on 9 November. In total, WFP provided 250,000 schoolchildren with hot meals in 2020. Through WFP’s home-grown school feeding programme, schoolchildren in three departments were served a diversified, fresh seasonal menu cooked exclusively with local products.