African Union marks the African day of school feeding, recognizing school meals as the world’s most widely used safety net with a vital role in education. Held every March 1, the day marks the continents commitment to mobilising an enabling environment for school feeding among policy makers and governments.
African Heads of State established March 1 as African Day of School feeding at the 26th African Union Summit in January 2016. Since then, the African union has celebrated three African School Feeding Days in Niger, Congo, and Zimbabwe. The fourth annual African Day of School Feeding will be held in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire
School meals provide critical social support, encouraging more regular attendance at school and contributing to children’s nutritional status. They are also a key long-term investment in millions of people’s futures, in local economies, and in reducing hunger across the globe. As part of its Agenda 2063, the African Union has developed and adopted the Continental Education Strategy for Africa and the comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).
In Sierra Leone, the World Food Programme (WFP) in coordination with the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE) provided nutritious school meals to some 30,000 school children in Pujehun and Kambia District.
“School feeding programmes are a vital way to not only increase class enrolment but to also sustain attendance, improve nutritional status and school performance, and to grow local economies,” said WFP Country Director and Representative, Dr. Housainou Taal.
The day comes timely, as on the 27th February 2019, Sierra Leones Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation- Dr. Alie Kabba and Japan’s Ambassador to Sierra Leone, H.E. Mr. Tsutomu Himeno, signed a Food Aid Programme agreement, in contribution to the Governments Free Quality Education and School Feeding Programmes, with the later due to start later in the year.
In 2017,WFP supported school feeding programmes for 18.3 million children in 71 countries across the world. It also built the capacities of 65 governments leading to improved national school feeding programmes for another 39 million children.