2.9m pupils in 8,683 public schools benefit from school feeding

The Minister of Gender, Child and Social Protection, Cynthia Mamle Morrison, has disclosed that over 2,980,000 pupils in 8,683 public basic schools are currently benefiting from the Ghana School Feeding Programme, with one hot and nutritious meal for each school-going day.

Addressing the media in Accra on Wednesday, 2 September 2020, the minister said the programme has built the capacity of 9,178 caterers and cooks in eleven regions in an innovative nutrition training, which has improved the quality of meals served to pupils.

“Training on meal planner softer has been undertaken for desk and nutrition officers in eleven regions.

“Also, registration of pupils in school-feeding schools on the National Health Insurance Scheme has been relaunched”.

The minister further added that farmer-based organisations in the Volta and Oti Regions have been profiled.

This, she said, will help facilitate the link between caterers and farmers in the value chain as far as the acquisition of foodstuffs are concerned.

“The Ghana School Feeding Programme has reviewed a national and district operational manual with key stakeholders within the middle and southern belt of Ghana to enable the programme deliver on its services effectively and efficiently,” she said.

The Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) was initiated in 2005 under the John Agyekum Kufuor-led NPP government as a social protection intervention on the context of the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) Pillar III.

The programme has so far impacted positively on enrolment, attendance and retention of children in some beneficiary Basic Schools in the country.