The Ministry of Education (MINEDUC) in partnership with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) will host the launch of the Eastern Africa Regional School Meals Coalition Network from 26th to 27th June 2023 in Kigali.
The global School Meals Coalition was launched at the UN Summit on Food Systems in September 2021. It is led by France and Finland and brings together over 60 countries as well as 50 partners, including UN agencies, NGOs, think tanks and academic partners.
The coalition aims to give every child in need the opportunity to receive a nutritious meal at school by 2030. In addition to Rwanda, several countries in the region have expressed interest in joining the regional network including Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.
The Regional School Meals Coalition Network seeks to create an opportunity for participating countries to engage in peer-to-peer learning and experience sharing, as well as to exchange at practical and technical level on areas key to school meal programmes.
The network will also help to pursue joint advocacy efforts for various key aspects related to school meal programmes, such as sustainable financing plans and filling existing research gaps.
“As Rwanda hosts the launch of the Regional School Meals Coalition Network, this provides an excellent opportunity for collaboration among countries, to learn from each other’s successes and challenges. This sharing of information can lead to more effective and sustainable school feeding initiatives and inspire new initiatives that will positively impact the lives of millions of school children,” said Hon. Gaspard Twagirayezu, Minister of State in charge of Primary and Secondary Education.
“On behalf of all school feeding partners in Rwanda, we commend the Government of Rwanda for its commitment to scaling up school feeding through its National School Feeding Programme (NSFP) and for hosting the Regional School Meals Coalition Network. School feeding can be a game changer for building countries’ future by supporting human capital development and creating a powerful platform to build sustainable food systems,” said Ahmareen Karim, WFP Rwanda’s acting Representative and Country Director. (End)