[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1156 Engrossed in House (EH)]

<DOC>
H. Res. 1156

                In the House of Representatives, U. S.,

                                                     December 13, 2022.
Whereas the George McGovern-Robert Dole International Food for Education and 
        Child Nutrition Program (referred to in this preamble as the ``McGovern-
        Dole Program'') has improved the food security, nutrition, literacy, and 
        primary education of school-age children, particularly young girls, and 
        their families in over 48 countries in just two decades;
Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program was established by section 3107 of the Farm 
        Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 1736o-1) to procure 
        agricultural commodities and provide financial and technical assistance 
        to carry out preschool and school food for education programs in foreign 
        countries and maternal, infant, and child nutrition programs for 
        pregnant women, nursing mothers, infants, and children who are 5 years 
        of age or younger;
Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program has provided over 5.5 billion school meals 
        benefitting over 31 million school-age children and their communities;
Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program has been successfully administered by the 
        Foreign Agricultural Service of the Department of Agriculture;
Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program is a key program of the Department of 
        Agriculture aligned with the governmentwide Global Food Security 
        Strategy;
Whereas in fiscal year 2021 alone, McGovern-Dole Program projects have directly 
        benefitted more than 4.5 million children and community members through 
        the distribution of United States-produced commodities that provide 
        daily nutritious and high-quality meals and mitigate food insecurity;
Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program partners with American farmers, who provide 
        46,770 metric tons (``MT'') of food commodities in support of fiscal 
        year 2021 McGovern-Dole Program grants in Central America, Africa, and 
        Asia;
Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program complements United States agricultural 
        commodities with food grown and purchased locally to support farmers and 
        markets within their own communities and to build the capacity of local 
        governments and communities to continue and sustain the benefits of the 
        McGovern-Dole Program into the future;
Whereas during the COVID-19 pandemic when school closures were commonplace, the 
        McGovern-Dole Program effectively shifted from providing meals in 
        schools to providing take-home rations and distributed approximately 
        23,000 MT of commodities donated by the United States and 550 MT of 
        locally procured commodities to more than 1,700,000 McGovern-Dole 
        Program participants and their families across 26 active projects, 
        ensuring that children continued to receive daily meals and learn while 
        at home;
Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program recognizes the value of educating young girls 
        and contributes to overcoming the barriers they encounter in accessing a 
        high-quality education by promoting equality and the reduction of 
        gender-based violence;
Whereas school meals provide an incentive for families to send girls to school 
        and help girls to stay in school, effectively preventing early marriage 
        and delaying first pregnancy, which can trap young women in poverty and 
        limit their future potential;
Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program strengthens local community health and 
        education through the formation of parent-teacher associations, teacher 
        training, and improving the infrastructure of schools, classrooms, 
        commodity storerooms, latrines, and water sources; and
Whereas the United States, as a member of the Global School Meals Coalition, is 
        committed to and recognizes that investments in McGovern-Dole Program, 
        are central to bolstering food security, building resilience to future 
        shocks, and supporting the nutritional, health, and educational needs of 
        children and adolescents worldwide: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that the 
United States is committed to--
            (1) building upon the twenty years of successful work of the George 
        McGovern-Robert Dole International Food for Education and Child 
        Nutrition Program (in this resolution referred to as the ``McGovern-Dole 
        Program'') and its positive role in breaking cycles of hunger and 
        poverty, providing opportunity through education and literacy, and 
        improving overall nutrition and health;
            (2) complementing humanitarian assistance efforts and development 
        programs through the continued implementation of the McGovern-Dole 
        Program that addresses global food insecurity and creates conditions for 
        peace and stability; and
            (3) supporting United States farmers, millers, shippers, and 
        commodity groups that provide agricultural commodities for use in the 
        McGovern-Dole Program to help combat global malnutrition and food 
        insecurity and advance global education.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.