The expansion of free school meals has created problems for Ukrainian communities
On September 1, 2026, Ukraine launched the final phase of scaling up the state program for free hot meals, which was extended to all students in grades 1–11 (12) at public schools offering in-person and blended learning formats.
The program covers approximately 3 million children, and its total funding for 2026 is set at 14.4 billion hryvnias, of which more than 7.4 billion is allocated for September through November. The cost standard per child is 50 hryvnias per day for elementary school and 60 hryvnias for middle and high school, while in frontline regions a distributed mechanism is in place that includes 15 hryvnias from the UN World Food Programme.
Scaling up the initiative revealed a number of organizational and financial challenges in local communities. In particular, Oksana Prodan, an advisor to the head of the Association of Ukrainian Cities, highlighted the insufficient capacity of school cafeterias, as well as a shortage of dining spaces, kitchen equipment, and staff. Since the fixed co-financing scheme was abolished, additional expenses for catering, logistics, and services have fallen on local budgets, which are already under significant strain due to the construction of shelters, support for internally displaced persons, and assistance to the Defense Forces.
A separate challenge remains the organization of meals during air raid alerts, when it is impossible to serve prepared food to children on time. In this regard, Member of Parliament Vitalii Voitsekhivskyi emphasized the need to develop flexible funding mechanisms and compensation for meals that could not be served due to unforeseen circumstances. In the regions, educational institutions are forced to reschedule their timetables and extend the duration of breaks, and in some regions, particularly in Bukovina, monitoring and official inspections regarding the organization of meals have already begun.
Source: “Glavkom.”
As a reminder, the Verkhovna Rada amended the law “On the State Budget of Ukraine for 2025” regarding financial support for the security and defense sector and addressing priority issues. Funds were allocated, in particular, for school meals for students in grades 1–4 in all regions and for students in grades 5–11 in frontline territories.
Meanwhile, the government plans to expand the free school meal program to all students in grades 1 through 11 nationwide starting in 2026.
