Buhari Okays N93bn To Fund First Phase Of Homegrown School Feeding In 2016 Budget Across The Country

Read the press statement below…
To ensure the effective
implementation of the National
Home-grown School Feeding,
HGSF, Programme, the Buhari
presidency has already provided
enough funds in the 2016 budget
that will ensure that in the first
instance 5.5 million primary
school pupils would be served one
free hot meal a day.
Making this explanation Tuesday
afternoon in Abuja was the Senior
Special Assistant, Media & Publicity
in the Office of the Vice President,
Mr. Laolu Akande, who added that
while states are an active
participant in the school feeding
plan, their counterpart funding is
not required to start the
programmer’s implementation.
Willing states are however being
encouraged to complement the
programme so it can reach more
pupils, but state governments
cannot and will not be compelled to
do this. However the support of the
states is vital whether they are able
to fund in addition to what the FG
will do or not, according to the SSA,
saying “we want the states to
embrace this programme, it is good
for the people, it’s a win-win for
everyone.”
Akande who was responding to
media enquiries and requests for
clarifications on the issue stated
that “the school feeding programme
is not a counter-part funding
arrangement model, no. What we
have is a plan where the FGN
provides 100 % feeding costs for
pupils in primary one to three in
all public primary schools in the
country.”
According to him, “let me be clear
about this, the Buhari presidency
has made adequate arrangements
for the HGSF to happen and by the
grace of God, we are going forward
to do exactly that.”
But what is interesting, he
continued, is the fact that some
states have actually gone ahead to
start the school feeding programme
on their own, while some others
are also making such a plan. In that
case he noted, “more primary
school pupils would be fed in the
final analysis.”
If a state is not able to fund the
school feeding in Primary 4-6,
Akande made it clear that the FG
will not abandon such a state but
instead go ahead and feed pupils
from Primary 1-3.
Specifically he discloses that “5.5
million school children would be
fed free of charge for 200 school
days in first phase of homegrown
school feeding programme starting
this year.”
But when the programme is
completed, over the course of the
elected four year term of the
presidency, the number will rise to
over 20 million.
At least 5.5 million Nigerian
primary school children -ie starting
first in
18 states-three per geopolitical
zones-would be fed for 200 school
days under the free Homegrown
School Feeding Programme, as
N93.1B has been appropriated for
this in the 2016 budget.
The Senior Special Assiatnt
explained further that HGSF
programme creates jobs along the
value chain and improves family
and state economies-“because it is a
localized menu that is provided for
the pupils by the small-holder
farmers from within the
community who in turn also
benefit.”
For example he continued, “a food
vendor who to prepares meals for
say 100pupils per day, has to
interact with small-holder farmers
who grow yam, egg, condiments
vegetables fruits. She has to
interface with transporters as well
as sellers of fuel e.tc thereby
exchanging income along the value
chain.
Besides fully funding the
programme for pupils in primaries
1-3, the federal government will
also provide technical assistance
that will allow states design their
context-specific state owned
models, Akande said, adding that
such assistance comes with partner
experience and support in key
areas of health education and
agriculture, allowing the managers
of the program to understand the
concept of the “home grown” school
feeding.
Regarding how the funds would be
disbursed, Akande said the money
will come from the federal
government coffers and go straight
to caterers and other beneficiaries
at a rate of N70 per meal.
The school feeding program though
a part of the APC manifesto, is also
African Union inspired scheme to
grow th continent while ensuring
pupils go to schools.
The programmes is also embedded
within the national school health
policy and the Universal basic act
of the FGN 2004