Tanzania: Support School Feeding Programmes, Kondoa Residents Told

Kondoa — KONDOA District Executive Director (DED), Mr Shaban Millao, has called on residents to strengthen support for school feeding programmes by ensuring all pupils receive meals at school in line with the National Nutrition Strategy.

Speaking during the climax of a nutrition, health and gender awareness campaign in Kondoa recently, Mr Millao said school feeding is essential for improving children's health, school attendance and academic performance.

The event was organised by the Kondoa District Council in collaboration with the Centre for Counselling, Nutrition and Health Care (COUNSENUTH).

It brought together residents from five villages. Mr Millao urged households to continue contributing food to school feeding programmes and to prioritise children's health and wellbeing as part of efforts to build a healthy and productive nation.

He also called on residents to safeguard peace and unity in their communities, saying a peaceful environment is vital for development.

"A peaceful place is safe for our development activities. Therefore, it is important that we maintain peace and become good ambassadors in our communities," he said.

COUNSENUTH, which partnered with the district council in the campaign, works to improve nutrition, maternal and child health, food security and mental health through community-based programmes.

The organisation supports pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, children under five and other vulnerable groups through nutrition education, counselling and health interventions.

Meanwhile, the Dodoma Region school feeding programme continues to register positive results, with 634,456 primary and secondary school students benefitting from the initiative as of February this year.

The beneficiaries include 511,630 primary school pupils, equivalent to 84.3 per cent and 122,826 secondary school students, representing 79.7 per cent.

Dodoma Regional Commissioner Rosemary Senyamule said the region has prioritised school feeding under its strategic plan, describing the progress achieved so far as encouraging.

She directed district authorities and schools to complement the programme by establishing school gardens and planting shade and fruit trees to enhance food production and promote self-reliance among students.

Read the original article on Daily News.