Food for Education CEO Wawira Njiru
African countries and world leaders have been urged to invest in school feeding programmes to secure the future generation.
This is even as Kenya joins the world in celebrating World Food Day, observed annually on October 16. The day serves as a reminder of the importance of food security and the ongoing global effort to end hunger.
Food for Education CEO Wawira Njiru called for urgent investment in the school feeding revolution to ensure children across Africa stay in school to get the education they and the continent will need in the future.
“If we are serious about investing in our continent, we urgently need to invest in the education of our children because they are the human capital of all our futures. The only way to do that is to keep them in school to ensure they learn. The best way to do that is to feed them a hot, nutritious meal every day in school through programs like ours.
Food for Education currently feeds over 450,000 children day in various counties in Kenya. Njiru said the number is barely 0.2 per cent of all the children facing malnutrition in Africa.
“We know that hungry kids can’t learn, and as an organization, we are changing that one meal at a time. Through our work, we’re investing in children’s future, and the future of Kenya and all of Africa. But we cannot do it alone,” she said.
“So today on World Food Day I’m calling on leaders in Africa and around the world to commit today to investing in our children by backing programs like Food for Education and by doing so ensure our children have the skills necessary for their success and the success of Africa.”
Njiru spoke on World Food Day in Nairobi, where they met different stakeholders ahead of a meeting with World Bank leaders.
According to her, the recent Africa Pulse report from the World Bank argued that addressing education and skills gaps, among other investment and policy priorities could help accelerate growth to end poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The report also stated that currently, 90 per cent of 10-year-olds in Sub-Saharan Africa are unable to read simple text.
According to the report, seven in 10 children in Sub-Saharan Africa are not benefiting from pre-primary education.
Less than 1.5 per cent of 15 to 24-year-olds are enrolled in formal vocational education programs, compared to roughly 10 per cent in high-income countries.
The report stated that climate change is creating an agricultural crisis, which is fueling malnutrition with more than 45 million children in Eastern and Southern Africa at risk of health issues, displacement, and educational setbacks.
Food for Education aims to feed 3 million African children daily by 2030, by tripling the number of children served in Kenya and by expanding its network into two more African countries.
Their three-pronged strategy will see them feed one million children daily in Kenya by partnering with county governments along with the national government to provide affordable, nutritious meals for children and their families.
