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Chaco school directors forced to lie about student meals amid budget crisis
🇦🇷 Argentina /Economy & Trade

Chaco school directors forced to lie about student meals amid budget crisis

From La Nación · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • School directors in Chaco, Argentina, report being forced to lie about the quality and quantity of food provided to students due to severe budget cuts.
  • The provincial government's budget for school canteens has been halved, leaving only $800 (about $0.50 USD) per student per day for breakfast and lunch.
  • This reduction in funding has led to increased cases of malnutrition and low weight among children, with school staff expressing desperation over the lack of response from authorities.

School directors in Argentina's Chaco province are speaking out, claiming they are compelled to deceive about the meals served to students due to drastically insufficient funding. Phrases like “They send us much less money,” “The canteen doesn't work,” and “We are forced to lie” reflect the dire situation faced by educators in rural schools.

We are forced to lie.

— School directors and teachersDescribing the situation in Chaco's rural schools where budget cuts force them to misrepresent the food provided to students.

These educators, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal, emphasize that the meals provided at school are often the only food children receive daily. However, the budget allocated per student has been slashed to just $800 pesos (approximately $0.50 USD) per day for both breakfast and lunch. This meager amount barely covers the cost of basic staples like a kilogram of flour or a package of the cheapest rice.

They send us much less money.

— School directors and teachersExpressing the drastic reduction in funding for school canteens.

Chaco is one of Argentina's provinces most affected by social emergency. Official data from March shows poverty rates at 42.2% in Gran Resistencia. Despite this critical context, provincial government resolutions indicate that the budget for school canteens has been halved from the previous year, and fewer schools are receiving aid. This has resulted in a noticeable increase in cases of malnutrition and low weight among children.

We did not want to be complicit in a system that forces you to lie with the preparation of non-existent menus.

— Marcelo AlvarengaA teacher explaining his resignation due to the inability to provide adequate meals with the available budget.

Some teachers have voiced their desperation, with one educator in Río Muerto Cruz de El Espinillo having announced his resignation, stating he did not want to be “complicit in a system that forces you to lie with the preparation of non-existent menus.” While the provincial Minister of Human Development, Diego Gutiérrez, acknowledged budget constraints, he asserted that a more transparent and timely system for fund transfers is now in place, using rechargeable cards. He stated, “We are aware that everything can be better, but today the system works.” However, school directors maintain that with the current funds, they can only afford to prepare simple noodle or rice stews, occasionally adding small amounts of chicken or meat.

We are aware that everything can be better, but today the system works.

— Diego GutiérrezMinister of Human Development of Chaco, commenting on the improved system for fund transfers to schools.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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