Susil says no money for school kids’ free brunch
With much fanfare, Education Minister Susil Premajayantha kicked off in January the World Food Programme and USAID supported free midday meals for school children.
This was greatly welcomed by poverty-stricken parents and by nutritionists who had warned of rising malnutrition among Lankan children mainly due to the country’s bankruptcy. The widespread popularity of the free meal programme led the minister to even announce on March 13th that the 1.2 million presently receiving the midday meal would be increased to 2 million from April’s new school term.
But when the kids went back to school after their holidays, they found to their dismay no free meals on their class tables. The parents were told the programme had been halted.
Why? Why had a programme, which had been on the planning board since September last year to provide over a million children in 8000 rural schools free midday meals, and implemented in January this year, abruptly stopped after just three months?
It needed a question from JVP leader Dissanayake in Parliament on Wednesday to make Education Minister Susil Premajayantha admit that the programme had been halted temporarily for lack of funds. That can be hardly an excuse.
A ministry press release, issued on March 18th, stated, ‘The ministry has also instructed the doubling of the number of children who receive lunch from the next school term. The World Food Programme and American aid have provided rice, lentils, salmon, and cooking oil for the meals given to children five days a week’.
When a long-term welfare programme is planned, isn’t it vital to be first assured that the necessary funding will be available to support implementation? And before talking big of doubling the amount, to be doubly sure? Or was the minister content to bask in a blaze of publicity at the initial launch and feed the children for three months and to let them live off the fat for the rest of the year?
With the menu of rice, lentils, salmon -- and even the cooking oil -- funded by WFP and American aid, what was the local spanner in the works that halted the programme?
Premajayantha’s convoluted reply in the House was that the programme had been halted due to a delay in payments to suppliers in February and March. He said: ‘Steps are now being taken to make the outstanding payments of Rs. 875 million to all provinces for February and March using the World Bank funds within the next two to three weeks.’
Is that an answer worthy of the Education Minister to give for his and his ministry officials’ seeming apathy towards ensuring suppliers are paid on time in a 7 million dollar project funded by WFP and USAID?
The Daily Mirror also reported on April 26 that Premajayantha had said, ‘Rs. 16 billion had been allocated for this programme in last November’s budget for this year but it had been delayed due to the economic crisis.’
If so, what is he waiting for? Does he expect it to be given unasked? Ministries must fight tooth and nail to wrest their share from the miserly Finance Ministry. Premajayantha should put the President’s ‘first the children’ policy and demand from the Finance Ministry the necessary funds to pay the suppliers and ensure the children receive their free midday diet without a break. It is because of the economic crisis that the children must be fed through welfare schemes.
Only the day before, President Ranil Wickremesinghe had stressed his commitment to transforming the children of Lanka into an educated force, well-geared to meet the challenges of the future.
As Chief Guest at the centenary celebration of Rahula College in Matara, he had said: ‘We must provide our children with an education that meets the demands of the time. My government is working towards 2048 and beyond. As part of our plan, we have committed to creating a good education system in the country by 2030.’
But an educated force cannot be built on empty stomachs. And when the world has lent a helping hand by financially supporting the midday meal programme, it’s outrageous to see its benefit not flowing to nourish school children.
Pity, that some of the President’s ministers and their ministry bureaucrats, enjoying their ride on the gravy train, seem unable to walk his talk.
Even for the sake of Lanka’s seed and blossom.