Liberia has taken a major step toward modernizing its national school feeding programme with the rollout of a digital monitoring system designed to enhance accountability, improve nutrition oversight, and strengthen education outcomes across the country.
The initiative, launched in partnership with the World Food Programme (WFP), introduces the School Connect platform--a real-time digital system that enables education authorities to track school feeding operations as they happen, marking a shift from traditional manual reporting to data-driven management.
Speaking at the official launch, Education Minister Jarso Maley Jallah described the development as a turning point in Liberia's education reform agenda, emphasizing the government's commitment to using technology to improve programme delivery and oversight.
"While we are not yet where we want to be, we are certainly not where we used to be," Minister Jallah said, underscoring the administration's gradual progress toward full national ownership of school feeding programmes.
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The School Connect platform was first tested as a pilot in 75 schools, where it successfully tracked key indicators such as enrollment, attendance, food supplies, and meal consumption.
Following the success of the pilot phase, the programme is now being expanded to more than 320 schools across Montserrado, Margibi, Bong, Nimba, and Maryland Counties, significantly increasing government capacity to monitor and manage school feeding operations nationwide.
Minister Jallah emphasized that the system's value lies not only in data collection but in ensuring timely response to emerging challenges.
"If food supplies run low, the importance of the system is how quickly we respond," she explained. "Data must inform decisions, not just fill reports."
A key focus of the initiative is Liberia's transition from donor-supported programming to stronger government ownership of school feeding interventions.
According to the education minister, the government has increased its financial commitment to the programme, allocating US$1 million last year and US$1.8 million this year in the national budget to support its expansion.
She linked the reform to President Joseph Nyuma Boakai's broader vision of strengthening domestic investment in education and child welfare services.
Liberia has also joined the Global School Meals Coalition, committing to ensure that 45 percent of primary school students benefit from school feeding programmes by 2029.
Speaking at the event, WFP Liberia Country Director Agbessi Amewoa praised the government's leadership and reaffirmed WFP's continued partnership with Liberia in strengthening school feeding systems.
She described School Connect as a transformative innovation that replaces slow, fragmented manual reporting systems with real-time digital monitoring.
"School feeding programmes improve attendance, retention, and learning outcomes," Amewoa said. "But their success depends on reliable data. School Connect provides the transparency and evidence needed to make better decisions."
As part of its support, WFP is providing tablets for schools, computers for the Ministry's IT teams, and technical assistance to ensure effective system use and sustainability.
Minister Jallah stressed that sustainability remains a core objective of the reform, noting the importance of building resilient national systems that can function even in the absence of external funding.
"We must prepare systems that can withstand shocks," she said. "The long-term value of School Connect will be measured by whether it becomes part of Liberia's education system for years to come."
She added that previous funding disruptions in the development sector have reinforced the need for stronger institutional capacity and long-term planning.
The education minister further highlighted that school feeding goes beyond providing meals, stressing its impact on child nutrition, reduced stunting and malnutrition, and improved academic performance.
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The launch of the system took place at Sims Community School, one of the institutions benefiting from the programme, where officials have already observed increased enrollment linked to the availability of meals.
Authorities believe the digital platform will also help provide deeper insights into how nutrition influences attendance, learning outcomes, and child health across Liberia.
As Liberia scales up from pilot implementation to national coverage, both government and partners say the success of the programme will depend on effective data use, strengthened local capacity, and coordinated action across ministries and counties.
For the Ministry of Education and the World Food Programme, School Connect represents more than a technological upgrade--it signals Liberia's transition toward a modern, transparent, and nationally owned school feeding system designed to improve education delivery and child welfare outcomes nationwide.
