The Minister-Designate for Gender, Children, and Social Protection, Agnes Naa Momo Lartey has pledged to resolve the arrears in the School Feeding Program and ensure the initiative delivers quality meals to beneficiaries (students).
The School Feeding Program, a key government initiative aimed at boosting school enrollment and providing nutritious meals to pupils, has faced challenges in recent years, including delays in payments to caterers and concerns over the quality of meals served.
Speaking during her vetting in Parliament on January 22, 2025, she highlighted her commitment to addressing challenges in school feeding and capitation grants, as outlined in her party’s manifesto.
The nominee revealed that while payments for about 40 days have been made to caterers under the program, 31 days of arrears remain. She assured the public of her dedication to resolving this issue promptly.
She commended the government for initiating payments and reaffirmed the president’s commitment to sustaining the program.
The Minister-Designate emphasized her readiness to work with stakeholders, including caterers, school authorities, and civil society organizations, to address these challenges and improve the program.
“Our manifesto clearly outlines our goal to address the bottlenecks in school feeding and capitation grants. We even aim to extend the program to private schools”.
“This is something I am committed to resolving. One of my strengths is fostering dialogue with all involved to achieve sustainable outcomes”.
“With payments already initiated, I am confident that the president is committed to not only maintaining the program but also ensuring the quality of food is upheld”.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Deborah Amuzu
