Govt considers offering school lunch

By Conan Businge

THE Education ministry has prepared a Cabinet memo proposing eight options for providing lunch to children in primary schools.

In the memo, the ministry stated that hunger is one of the main reasons children perform poorly in universal primary education (UPE) schools.

The memo cites various reports which show that keeping children hungry at school leads to poor concentration, poor mental abilities, absenteeism, bad behaviour, poor health and school drop-out.

These, according to the memo, threaten to undermine the achievements of UPE.

Despite free education, eight out of every 10 children who join P.1 drop out before reaching P.7.

“Poor children cannot concentrate in class, especially in the afternoon, on an empty stomach,” the memo states.

“A number of homes are very far from school, making it impossible for pupils to go home for lunch and return for afternoon classes on time. In some cases pupils go back home but find no ready lunch.”

One of the options proposed in the memo is for the Government to secure sh168b to feed eight million primary school children annually.
Another sh14b would be required to feed students under universal secondary education.

Education permanent secretary Francis Lubanga said they had written a memo.

Lubanga added that the issue is likely to be resolved soon.

“We proposed a number of options to the Government, and we have written to the Cabinet. But that paper has not been discussed in the Cabinet,” Lubanga told Saturday Vision.

“I’m aware that the President wants this issue resolved very soon, and he is listening to all stakeholders. He has also given an ear and financial support to Uganda National Association of Teachers’ Union to carry out research on the best alternatives which will be taken to resolve this matter,” he added.

The state minister for primary education, Kamanda Bataringaya, said the ministry considers school lunch a priority and they were consulting stakeholders to have the issue resolved quickly.

He said whereas the document was the official position of the ministry, it was important to consider the views of other stakeholders, especially the finance and local government ministries, before cabinet discusses it.

“We have made proposals but we are still discussing with the other stakeholders before we can present this to the Cabinet. but we are sure some of these proposals can adequately solve problems of school feeding if all the other stakeholders agree with us.”

Whereas the Education Act 2008 tasks parents to provide lunch for their children, they have failed to do so, according to the memo.

“Field reports have continued to reveal that many children in government primary schools do not have a midday meal. The parents have not adequately played their role to the effect that their children study on empty stomachs the whole day.”

Should the Government fail to meet the cost of feeding children, the ministry is proposing other options including ending classes at 1:50pm so that children can have lunch at home.

This option, however, will require parents to pack their children break time snacks.

The Education Act 2008 allows schools to charge parents a limited amount of money for feeding children, provided it is agreed upon by the school management committee in consultation with the district council.

It, however, maintains that such payment be voluntary. The law also states that pupils must not be dismissed from school if their parents do not pay lunch fees.

Other options proposed by the ministry for feeding school children include children returning home for lunch, then going back to school. This, however, is not practical for children whose homes are far from school.

Among the options mentioned in the memo is the possibility of parents giving their children money to eat at school canteens. However, the majority of schools do not have a canteen.

Using school gardens to provide food is also proposed. This requires children to work in the gardens, or parents contributing to pay labourers.

Another option is for parents to give their children packed lunch. This has, however, not been successful due to food shortage in homes and the difficulty to store food in schools, including hygiene concerns. The possibility of parents paying voluntary lunch fees is another option.

This has been difficult to implement because many parents have not been able to pay. Children whose parents do not pay lunch fees undergo mental torture when they see other pupils eating.

Finally the document proposes that parents can cultivate communal land and supply schools with food. This raises the difficulty in quantifying each parent’s contribution, and may not be applicable where there is no communal land.

Students share their lunch experiences

David Kaima, P.2, Busu P/s, Iganga: “My father gives me sh200 to buy sugarcane for lunch. If I am not given money, I beg for a piece of sugarcane from my friends for lunch.”

Paul Kirenzi, P.4, Namadope: “I eat sugarcane from trucks that pass by school. On the days when no trucks pass by, I go with my friends to nearby plantations and steal something. If you do not eat at lunch, you cannot concentrate in the afternoon.”

Moses Opiyo of St. Joseph’s College, Layibi, Gulu says the school, gives them food. “On Monday and Tuesday we eat posho and beans. We eat posho and meat on Wednesday and beans with rice on Fridays. We used to get beans with weevils, but not anymore.”

Morris Ocen, S.2, Gulu SS acknowledges that the school provides them with lunch from Monday to Friday. He, however, appeals to the Government to give them breakfast, so that they can concentrate in class.

Denis Oweka, S.3, Gulu SS, says lunch at his school is only given to students who pay sh40,000 for it every term. “The students eat posho and beans from Monday to Friday. There is no balanced diet. The school gives them coupons,” he narrates. Those who cannot pay the lunch fee either buy bread from the canteen or wait till they get home.

Sandra Akello, P.3, Namadope P/S, Kiyunga: “I do not carry anything to school for lunch. I usually hurry home after school to eat food prepared by my mother.Why doesn’t government feed us the way it caters for tuition? Some pupils dose off during afternoon lessons due to hunger.”