Matabeleland North starts feeding scheme

PRIMARY schools in Matabeleland North will this week start receiving food relief under the schools feeding programme to cater for pupils from Early Child Development to Grade 2 classes as the Government takes steps to address the effects of drought on education.

Updating the Hwange district drought relief committee and stakeholders in Hwange on Thursday, Matabeleland North provincial social welfare officer Mr Mcnon Chirinzepi said as from this week rural primary schools in the province would start receiving their ration under the school feeding programme.

“As we are all aware, the Government is distributing relief aid to vulnerable groups in our communities in response to the drought so that no one starves. The drought relief will cater for ECD and Grades 1 and 2, so starting this week all rural schools in the province will begin to receive grain at distribution points. School heads will be required to carry national identification when they collect their rations on behalf of the school,” said Mr Chirinzepi.

Matabeleland North which has total enrolment of 84 769 pupils in ECD to Grade 2 will get a weekly grain allocation of 42,4 tonnes while the total required in the seven districts is 1 696 tons up to March 2017.

He said due to limited resources, the Government was being forced to narrow its feeding programme to ECD and Grades 1 and 2 pupils.

“The Government also realised the challenges which are being faced by prisons in feeding inmates because of fiscal challenges and have decided to include them together with education on the list of vulnerable groups that are supposed to benefit from the programme. So now we have labour constrained, food for work, subsidised, prisons and education as forming the vulnerable groups that we are focusing on.”