[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 116 (Thursday, July 14, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S3310]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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   SENATE RESOLUTION 709--EXPRESSING THE COMMITMENT OF THE SENATE TO 
BUILDING ON THE 20 YEARS OF SUCCESS OF THE GEORGE MCGOVERN-ROBERT DOLE 
             FOOD FOR EDUCATION AND CHILD NUTRITION PROGRAM

  Mr. MORAN (for himself, Mr. Leahy, Ms. Duckworth, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. 
Brown, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Marshall, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Blunt, 
Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. King, Mr. Booker, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Boozman, and Mr. 
Wicker) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry:

                              S. Res. 709

       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 2 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 
     5,500,000,000 school meals benefitting over 31,000,000 
     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 4,500,000 
     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 farmers in 
     the United States, 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 the recipient's 
     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 the 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 Senate that the 
     United States is committed to--
       (1) building upon the 20 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.

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