"Bhutan is growing into a prosperous country as its socio economic indicators show," said the WFP programme officer in Bhutan, Ms. Naoe Yakiya. "It's not justifiable for WFP to stay here forever." Ms. Naoe Yakiya said that starting in 2008, food assistance for Class XI and XII would be stopped, and in the following year for Class IX and X as well. Ten middle secondary schools would, however, be given food assistance up to the end of 2009 because of Bhutan's government request, Ms. Naoe Yakiya said. WFP's statistics show that it is helping 197 schools with more than 40,000 students in 2008. While assistance to 25 primary schools would be stopped completely or partially next year, the Department of School Education officials say that 39 primary schools with about 3,500 students, which were previously not receiving food, would receive WFP assistance. "This is because some remote areas in Bhutan still face food insecurity, and WFP's plan for the next five years and beyond will be to assist the primary school education in these areas," said Ms. Naoe Yakiya. The 39 schools were identified based on the vulnerability of the area to food insecurity and the walking distance from home to school, according to officials from the department of school education. The WFP will spend US$10 million, in the next five years, in feeding students and building hostels and kitchens for these students who are in the east and south region. Students there come from far-flung areas and are put up in temporary huts, WFP officials say, with no proper hygiene or security, especially for girls. The government spends Nu. 240 a student a month, in various lower secondary, middle secondary and higher secondary boarding schools, as expenses for a single meal a day which it provides to the students. Once WFP, which provides two meals a day out of the three, withdraws its support the government will have to bear a monthly expense of Nu. 720 a student. The Department of School Education indicated that the government would be spending about Nu. 24 million in 2009 for feeding Class IX and X students alone. The expenses are expected to increase from Nu. 45.8 million in 2010 to Nu. 48 million in 2011, to nearly Nu. 51 million in 2012. The WFP's assistance under which the national work force and rural people received food for labour will be stopped by end of this year. Rural access projects and road construction works were the areas in which food was traded for labour. Between 1974 and 2005, the WFP has provided a total assistance of US $ 67 million to Bhutan.
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