Food for All Africa launches 2021 LunchBox school feeding initiative

Food for All Africa with support from Beiersdorf CEWA, The Global Food Banking Network and United Way today launched the 2021 LunchBox School Feeding Initiative at the Bomigo EP Basic School, Anloga in the Volta region.

The program brought together dignitaries including the District Chief Executive Officer of Anloga, The Member of Parliament for Anlo, the District Director of Education, The District Director of NCCE, The Chief and people of Bomigo.

Speaking at the Launch, The District Chief Executive Officer, Hon. Seth Yormevu expressed his appreciation to Food for All Africa for choosing two deprived schools within his district to benefit from the program and encouraged NGOs to support government efforts towards accelerating development.

The Member of Parliament for Anlo, Hon. Richard Kwami Sefe commended the chief and people of Bomigo for their commitment to ensuring the success of the program.

Executive Director of Food for All Africa, Mr. Elijah Amoo Addo expressed worry about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the educational calendar of all schools in Ghana.

“Schools have been greatly affected as many have collapsed and in an effort to ensure that school children still get access to food support whiles at home during the lockdown, Food for All Africa worked with school authorities to deliver food bags to pupils in their various homes on monthly basis.

In anticipation of the reopening of schools, Food for All Africa carried out an assessment on its school feeding program and with funding support from Beiersdorf CEWA, The Global FoodBanking Network and United Way Global, 25 deprived schools across Greater Accra, Central, Eastern, Ashanti and Volta regions are benefiting from one academic year supply of free food ingredients, PPEs, hygiene materials and training for school feeding caterers. This would go a long way to keep children in school and as well, relieve parents of extra cost on their children’s meals at school.”

The Chairperson for the Launch, Madam Yvonne Akpene Ame-Bruce, District Director of Education for Anloga, advised the School Authorities and PTA to work together on ensuring the success of the program and asked that they maintain the kitchen built within their schools to be used for the cooking of the meals for the children.

Food for All Ghana School Feeding Program rebranded as the “LunchBox School Feeding Initiative” helps vulnerable and food-insecure children to get the education they desperately need to build a life free of poverty by providing a nutritious meal to children from pre-school through to primary school on a daily basis.

The project also gains special recognition for empowering children to get access to education through the immense efforts of providing school meals, and this is exactly what offers the basis for its financing module, where companies, supermarkets and private individuals can donate cash or food items to support the program.

With over 6,400 school children currently benefiting from the initiative, Lunch Box School Feeding Initiatives aims to:

· Set up a daily supply of one hot meal to children in deprived schools that are currently not covered by the government’s school feeding program.

· Support deprived schools to set up and operate their own school feeding initiative managed by School Authorities.

· Establish kitchens for schools in Ghana to have safe spaces and hygienic conditions under which school meals are prepared and served.

· Provide support for unemployed mothers to have a means of livelihood by working as trained caterers in their children’s schools.

· Mobilize private sector support towards improving school meals across Ghana