School Feeding Programme Boosts Education in Malawi, Officials Say
Some 35,000 smallholder farmers supply 520 schools, providing a reliable market for agricultural supply chains in rural communities.
LILONGWE, Malawi- The School Feeding Programme run by the United Nations World Food Program has significantly improved school attendance and reduced dropout rates in Malawi, according to officials who spoke Monday at an education symposium in the capital city of Lilongwe, writes Esther Banda.
"The School Feeding Programme is a powerful motivating factor that has helped a lot in improving school attendance, and as such, there are much lower school dropouts in the country," said Paul Turnbull, WFP country director and representative in Malawi.
Turnbull said evidence from WFP shows school meal interventions in primary schools have increased enrollment.
"Having a meal at school really helps a lot in terms of school attendance; children are more likely to finish their schooling, which is really important because we used to observe higher dropout rates before," Turnbull said.
Nancy Chaola Mdooko, deputy minister of education, thanked WFP for the programme, saying it has proven key to improving education quality. She said the programme has grown from 12 schools in 1999 to now serving 2,332 primary schools, reaching 1,919,944 students—35% of public primary students.
Mdooko also said the home-grown school feeding programme has transformed agriculture by providing local farmer organisations with a direct market through schools.
"Through the programme, a total of US$12 million has been transferred to over 24 farmers' organisations, feeding 464 primary schools over a period of three years," Mdooko said.
She added that to further commitment to the programme, the Ministry of Education has made school feeding one of five "strands for foundational learning" and aims to scale up the programme to cover all primary schools by 2030.
Currently, WFP provides home-grown school feeding in eight districts, reaching 676,000 children with nutritious school meals and nutrition education, according to Turnbull.
Some 35,000 smallholder farmers supply 520 schools, providing a reliable market for agricultural supply chains in rural communities.
The school feeding programme began in Malawi in 1999 as an emergency response when a severe drought hit Dedza district, affecting learners' ability to attend classes due to famine, officials said.
Turnbull and Mdooko spoke at the opening of a WFP regional symposium, sharing evidence on improving school-based programming outcomes.