The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, has handed over Three Hundred and Thirty Nine Thousand, Six Hundred and Fifty Two (339,652) sets of branded feeding utensils to the Kebbi State Government for the use of the Primary School pupils under the National Home Grown School Feeding Programme.
Speaking on the occasion at Atiku Bagudu Model Science Primary School Birnin Kebbi, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Hajiya Sadiya Umar Faruq, said the activity was one out of the several strategic plans on the programme targeted at pupils to ensure best experiences of hygiene and safety during their consumption of the free meals.
“We are providing a total of 339,652 sets of branded feeding utensils for the use of the Kebbi State pupils on the NHGSFP”.
The Minister, represented by the Director Procurement of the Ministry, Alhaji Bello Alkali, hoped and appealled that, the items are purposely used so that the children benefit more from the interventions provided.
She assured that, the Federal Government and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development would continue to improve delivery on all its social interventions especially on the National Home-Grown School Feeding programme.
The Kebbi State Governor, Senator Atiku Bagudu, represented by the State Commissioner for Basic Education, Alhaji Muhammad Magawata Aleiro, while thanking President Muhammadu Buhari and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs for initiating the programme, revealed that, the state is the only state providing meal to day schools in the country.
The Governor noted that, the school feeding programme had assisted greatly in reducing out of school children in the state.
According to him, currently there are over five hundred and fifty four thousand Primary School pupils in the state with also seventy boarding Secondary Schools.
He said, the state government had constructed Six Tsangaya and Fourty One Normadic Schools across the state.
The Chairman, Kebbi State Universal Basic Education Board, Professor Suleiman Khalid, said with the introduction of the school feeding programme, there was improvement in the enrollment of children into schools which also reduced the rate of out of school children.
Abdullahi Tukur, Kebbi