GoL, WFP join hands to promote Home Grown School Feeding Program in Liberia
The Government of Liberia and the World Food Programme have signed a strategic plan to promote agriculture, health, and education through a Home Grown School Feeding Program.
On Tuesday, August 27, 2019, the Liberian government through the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning and the World Food Programme signed US$50.2 million World Food Programme’s Country Strategic Plan (CSP). The plan is expected to end in 2023.
The Home Grown School Feeding Program under the CSP will use food produced from Liberian farmers for school meals for primary school children across the country.
MFDP’s Deputy Minister for Fiscal Affairs, Samora P. Z. Wolokolie, who signed on behalf of the Liberian government said that the Home Grown School Feeding Program is directed to achieving increased enrolment, improved classroom performance, enhanced learning activities, and discouraging drop-out rate in schools across the country. He disclosed that the Program will reach 170,000 students in 2019.
He said the Government has allocated in Fiscal Year 2019/20 National Budget, US$500,000 toward home-grown school feeding, with the amount expected to increase as the country’s budgetary strength grows in the future.
WFP Liberia’s Country Director, Dr. Bienvenu Djossa, said the signing of the CSP is an important milestone in the history of WFP’s engagement with Liberia.
He said the Plan is keenly aligned with the government’s Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD) and its aim of addressing Liberia’s challenge of poverty alleviation.
Dr. Djossa further that through the implementation of the CSP, the WFP will strongly contribute to the PAPD in terms of boosting rural agriculture program, education and health through the Home Grown School Feeding Program.
Also, Deputy Education Minister, Latim Da Thong, said the CSP aligns with the SDGs Pillars One, Two, Three and Eight, respectively. He said the Ministry of Education (MoE) has enjoyed a strong partnership with the WFP which has resulted in capacity development activities over the years.
He assured that the Ministry is committed to linking the conventional school feeding program through an integrated school feeding program where all objectives of the CSP will be achieved.
