School Feeding Programme: Ministry Engages Stakeholders On Nutrition Guidelines

The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development has engaged relevant stakeholders in a validation meeting on nutrition guidelines to improve on the school feeding programme.
The validation meeting on nutrition guidelines of the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme was organised by the ministry in Abuja, last Thursday.
National Coordinator, National Social Investment Programme of the ministry, Umar Bindir, said the aim of the meeting was to have a globally acceptable document for the programme.
While noting that the school feeding programme was aimed at boosting the enrollment of pupils as well as their nutritional status, Bindir said, “the objective of the guidelines is to identify national nutritional requirements and reduce micronutrients deficiencies.We also need to promote nutrition best practices to strengthen the programme better”.
“The nutritional status is one of the most important components and objectives of the programme and this is what brought about nutritional guidelines that we are here to validate.
“The guidelines are so important to us knowing that part of the role of the state government is to develop the menu being developed by the nutritional officer in that state.
“We need to ensure that what is on that menu is of nutritional value and beneficial to the pupils nutritionally and academically,” he said.
In her remarks, the minister, Sadiya Umar-Farouq, noted that the school feeding programme began in 2016 and was implemented in 35 states of the federation including the Federal Capital Territory.
Represented by her Technical Assistant on National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme, ZainabAbubakar, Umar- Farouq said that the programme would provide one free nutritious meal to pupils from Primary 1 to Primary 3 in public schools nationwide.
According to Umar-Farouq, the school feeding is a collaborative programme between the Federal Government and state governments.
Also speaking, National President, Nutrition Society of Nigeria, Prof. WasiuAfolabi said that the school feeding programme could be breakfast or lunch.