‘Make our school a beneficiary of School Feeding Programme’ – Anglican School pupils appeal
Pupils of Anglican Primary School at Tikobo No-2, in the Jomoro Municipality have made a passionate appeal to the government to consider making their school a beneficiary of the School Feeding Programme.
The pupils, numbering over 450 lamented that their parents usually do not give them for school, which renders them almost always hungry in class; a situation they complain, is affecting their academic performance.
“We are calling on the government to include our school onto the school feeding programme because some of our parents can’t provide money for schooling so some of us study on empty stomachs”, the kids told New Day FM’s Kaakyire Kwasi Afari on Thursday August 5, 2021.
The Chief of Ehoaka Community, Nana Baze Kpanyinli (II) who is a teacher at the Anglican primary school, confirming the situation, bemoaned that, pupils keep “leaving their schools to join others that are benefiting from the Ghana School Feeding Programme just to have free meals.”
He indicated that he support some of the pupils financially for their daily feeding, a situation he said was taking a toll on him.
He called on the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, the Jomoro Municipal Assembly, Jomoro MP, and other necessary government officials to take steps to include their school in the feeding programme or the school faces an imminent collapse.
The Assembly member for Tikobo No-2 electoral area, Hon Augustine Marshall adding his voice to the call said “most of the pupils were from extremely poor homes and as a result had to come to school on empty stomachs.”
According to him, they have made several petitions to the Jomoro municipal Chief Executive, Hon Enerst Kofie and the Social Service Sub-committee at the Jomoro municipal assembly but they only receive assurances.
He commended one Mr Kenneth Afful, a resident at Tikobo No-2 who annually donate food items to the students as their only source of school feeding programme in the school.
Some caterers of the school who also spoke on the situation told the journalist the students only enjoy free meals once in a blue moon.
“Most parents don’t give their wards any money for feeding and they don’t also cook for the children before they come to school. So therefore, when those hungry children see that in the other nearby schools they are enjoying free school feeding meals they quickly decide to join those schools.”
Meanwhile, the pupils are also calling on the government to provide a befitting Kindergarten block and furniture for the school.
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