Free lunches for all pupils of primary schools and last grades of nursery schools should become a reality as of January 1, 2019, Smer-SD leader Robert Fico told a news conference in Bratislava on Tuesday. This social measure will apply to around 516,000 children; pupils of primary schools and last grades of nursery schools. "Children's participation in lunches in school canteens is very poor chiefly among students of the fifth to ninth grades of primary schools, amounting to 50-60 percent," stated Fico. Each child should thus get €1.20 per day from the state for a meal. It would be about €120 per child in a single school year. "The measure will cost the state about €117 million in total," said Fico. If free lunches are successful next year, the party will consider extending this measure to apply to secondary school students as well.
The Opposition was more sceptical of the announcement, with Veronika Remišová from Ordinary People/OLaNO announcing her concern that the small sum allocated for meals will result in low quality foods being served to children. "More than 15 percent of children are obese already, but the state allocates extremely small contributions for lunches; around one euro. It's quite challenging to cook healthy and quality lunches with plenty of fruit and vegetables for children and youth with that sum," stated Remišová.
Branislav Gröhling from the opposition party Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) called the move populist, stating that free meals for pupils isn't what the Slovak education system really needs. "Most pupils and parents don't need free meals, but they do need quality textbooks, well-equipped schools and good education for their children," he said.
