14m pupils to benefit from national home grown school feeding programme ― Minister

No fewer than 14 million pupils across the country are expected to benefit from the National Home Grown School Feeding Programme initiated by Federal Government by 2023.

The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq disclosed this during a courtesy visit to the Governor Emmanuel Udom of Akwa Ibom State.

The Minister who was represented by the Zonal Monitor of the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme, Dr Abubakar Sulaiman said that an additional 5 million pupils were being targeted by 2023 in addition to the existing 9 million pupils who are benefiting from the daily free nutritious meal during school term nationwide.

The Minister who reiterated the present administration’s resolve to ensure that more children are captured in its social protection programmes,

“Today, we are here in Akwa Ibom State on the strength of our partnership and mutual recognition of the need to do more on the National Home Grown School Feeding Programme NHGSFP, to bring more Nigerians under the umbrella of the Government’s social protection mechanism, to look at scaling up the number of the pupils benefiting from the Programme.

“With over 100,000 cooks employed and more than 100,000 small holder farmers participating in this value chain, Umar Farouq said that the NHGSFP is a serious potential for socio-economic development if strengthened and sustained nationwide.

She also affirmed the Administration’s readiness to sustain the working relationship with various States and Federal NHGSFP teams as well as key stakeholders such as the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Ministry of Education, National Orientation Agency (NOA), National Population Commission (NPC), National Youth Service Corp (NYSC), Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) and State Education boards for effective results.

“We are working jointly and closely to verify the existing number of beneficiaries on the program and update the records for better effectiveness, transparency and accountability,” the Minister noted.

The Akwa Ibom State Governor ably represented by the Commissioner of Women Affairs, Dr Ini Adiakpan thanked the Federal Government for its foresight and consistency in reaching out to the vulnerable.

She promised that the state government will continue to play its part in ensuring that the initiative records a 100 per cent success.

At the event, the Zonal Monitor and the Project Task Team of the NHGSFP held a meeting with the state Project Task Team where enumeration exercise forms were presented to the State Director of the National Orientation Agency.

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