By Olimatou Coker
Bakary Badjie, the Minister of Youth and Sports, has disclosed that the Government of the Gambia created a budget line of 162.5 million dalasis for the school feeding programme.
Badjie made these remarks on Tuesday while stepping in for the of higher education minister at a day-long forum meant to present the findings of a comprehensive impact evaluation of the 2023 homegrown school feeding programme
The event, organized by the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education and the World Food Programme, was held at Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference Center.
The home-grown school feeding program is a collaborative effort by the World Food Program, the United Nations Office of evaluations and the World Bank’s development impact department aims to enhance education and nutrition by sourcing food locally for school meal initiatives.
Minister Badjie said the huge amount allocated to school feeding demonstrates government’s commitment to ensuring that children are well fed as well as provided with the necessary environment for conducive learning.
“It is also important to note that the United States government, through the McGovern Dole Food for Education programme coordinated by the Catholic Relief Service (CRC) have also committed 28.7 million US dollars into the feeding program”, he said.
Miranda Sende, the WFP County Director, said that the evaluation offers a strong foundation for expanding and refinding the program to maximize its impact on future generations.
She added that the Home-Grown School Feeding Programme has been a “cornerstone of WFP’s efforts in The Gambia to address multiple challenges: food insecurity, poor nutrition, low school attendance, and other educational gaps.”
Karl Frederick Paul, the UN Resident Coordinator, said the UN recognizes the critical importance of education, nutrition and sustainable agriculture in achieving the 2030 Agenda.
“School meals are one of the most widespread social safety nets in the world and an estimated 418 million children benefit globally. School meals encourage the poorest families to send their children to school. In 2024 WFP provided daily school meals to over 150,000 children in over 400 primary schools across the country,” he said.
