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The Ministry of Education and Nairobi City County are finalising a legal instrument to facilitate partnership in the school meals programme, Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu has said. 

According to the CS, the instrument will outline the obligations of each party and spell out the implementation mechanisms.

“As school heads, you will be expected to facilitate access to your schools. We also expect you to sensitize your school communities, especially the parents, guardians and learners, of this programme,” said Machogu.

He made the remarks yesterday when he met public primary schools Head Teachers at St George’s Primary in Nairobi.

The CS briefed them on the intended partnership that seeks to provide school meals to learners in public primary schools.

To ensure a smooth and efficient roll-out of the programme, Machogu said the Ministry and county will depend on you for accurate data on the enrolment in their respective schools so that the correct quantities of food are supplied.

“We expect you to support the implementation team by facilitating the monitoring and evaluation of the programme. Once the legal instrument is finalised, the Ministry will provide you with further guidance on the programme, and what is expected of you,” stated the CS.

According to the CS, the school meals programme is based on the realization that hunger and lack of food can be major obstacles to achieving this right. Without food, Machogu said many learners in food-insecure regions would be unable to attend or remain in school. To this end, he said the school meals programme is essential in ensuring that learners’ attention is focused on their school life and that they are not distracted by the fears and concerns of hunger. 

This, he said, is part and parcel of the Government’s effort to ensure 100 per cent transition across all levels of basic education.