Why School Meals Accountability Must Define the Future of Education and Social Protection

As the world prepares for Women Deliver 2026, Asuntha Charles — National Director for World Vision in the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu — takes us to the shores of Tulagi. This International Women’s Day, she reflects on a journey through fierce storms to find a quiet, overlooked truth about leadership within our communities and the potential of our children.

Five key risks likely to shape children’s wellbeing in 2026 and the urgency and bold action needed to change the current trajectory.

Through a partnership between World Vision and the World Food Programme (WFP), school feeding programmes are helping children stay in school, stay nourished and stay protected. School meals are a proven investment in learning, resilience, and human capital, especially in humanitarian emergencies.

Drawing on first‑hand experience from one of the world’s most fragile contexts, Paul Kinuthia, Senior Director, Food, Cash & Markets, Disaster Management, argues that repeatedly cutting food, health and protection services traps communities in endless crisis. He makes the case that narrowing aid to short‑term survival is a false economy that drives higher costs, deeper instability and repeated emergencies. The solution, the author provides, is urgent investment in resilience alongside life‑saving aid. This investment should be seen as a credible way to protect children and reduce the need over time.

Rising Together: Hope for Every Child | World Vision South Asia and Pacific 2025 Impact Report reveals how evidence-based programs reached 5.8 million children and 9.2 million people. Explore how we are tackling climate shocks, child hunger, and violence through locally-led solutions for children and communities across 15 countries.

In 2025, WV Syria Response reached 4.22M people despite crisis, expanding access, meeting communities, and reaffirming its mission to help children thrive.

In the rural communities of Kapiri Mposhi, access to clean water and quality maternal health services has long been a daily struggle. For expectant mothers, health workers, learners, and families, limited Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) infrastructure meant long walks to unsafe water sources, heightened risks of infection, and added pressure on already stretched health facilities.

Press release highlights the dangers faced by children and adults working in mines in North Kivu, DRC

At 13, Adama left school to support his family, trading education for long days in the fields. His story reveals the harsh reality children face when survival comes before learning.