EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - Global Child Nutrition Foundation

Scaling Up Sustainability: Linking School Feeding with Agriculture
Development to Maximize Food Security
May 3-7, 2011
Nairobi, Kenya
Country Perspectives: Implementation and Community
Participation
■ Speakers: Philomena Chege (Moderator), Ministry of Agriculture, Republic of Kenya
Irene Messiba, Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Ghana
Zuberi Samataba, Ministry of Education, Tanzania
Demissew Lemma Mekonne, Ministry of Education, Ethiopia
Sarah Balaba, The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), Uganda
Alice Montheu, Ministry of Education, Cameroon
Overview
Community participation in the day-to-day implementation of school
feeding programs is critically important for promoting the local
community “ownership” that can make the difference between a
successful transition away from donor support and a failed program
that is unable to be sustained.
A school feeding program that responds to community needs, is run
locally by engaged and accountable community stakeholders, and
is supported by community contributions has far greater prospects
for successfully becoming self-sustaining over the long term.
Context
Representatives from Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, and
Cameroon briefly described the school feeding programs in their
countries, focusing on ways in which local communities help
implement and benefit from these programs. Chairperson
Philomena Chege summarized key messages.
Key Points
Local community participation in school meal programs is
crucial to their long-term sustainability.
Underlying principles emerged as delegates from Ghana,
Tanzania, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Cameroon described their
school feeding programs’ implementation processes, governance
structures, challenges, and accomplishments.
Collectively, these programs reflected awareness that several
key elements, related to community involvement in program
implementation, are critically important:
Having a policy defining program-related roles and
responsibilities. Each of the five countries either has a strategy
or policy in place or is in the process of creating a policy that
defines clearly the roles of each actor in the school feeding
programs, including members of the community.
Sensitizing all stakeholders to program issues and objectives.
All actors—from national officials down to the local community
members who are touched by the program daily—must be
sensitized to the significance of providing school meals,
including the program’s critical objectives as well as health,
nutrition, and educational benefits. Engaging members of the
community is particularly important for fostering the program
ownership at the local level that is critical to programs’ longterm
sustainability.
Getting community participation in the school feeding program’s
daily implementation. Parents and other local
© 2011 GCNF and PCD. All rights reserved. Page 30
community members are encouraged to donate what
resources they can to help school meal programs succeed.
Some countries have local committees charged with managing
the logistics of food procurement, storage, security, meal
preparation, and distribution. Through cash for work programs,
some parents are paid for their labor.
“The school food program that responds to
community needs, is locally 'owned,' and
incorporates parental and community
contributions can go far.”
Philomena Chege, Ministry of Agriculture, Kenya
Engaging in community capacity-building efforts. Some
countries have training efforts underway to teach community
members the skills they need to administer and manage the
school feeding programs after external support ends.
Securing community representation in program governance.
Community members should be represented in the
governance of school feeding programs to ensure the
community’s needs are being met. In some countries, program
decisions are made by coalitions including school and
community stakeholders, such as PTA groups.
Establishing processes and policies to monitor progress and
promote accountability. Successful programs need to have
mechanisms that alert stakeholders to situations requiring
correcting, processes that promote financial transparency
and accountability and measures that document evidence of
progress toward objectives.
While the five countries examined in this session are making
progress toward many of these success factors, some challenges
and obstacles unique to their specific situations remain.
Ghana
An initiative to promote demand-side accountability has
been very successful.
Back in 2007, rapid expansion of Ghana’s school feeding
program resulted in abuses requiring a robust accountability
system. Demand-side accountability in particular was the
problem (supply-side accountability has long existed given the
financial reporting required of food suppliers).
In 2009, a partnership of the Dutch government, SNV, and the
Government of Ghana introduced a social accountability project.
Through that project, stakeholders have been educated about
school feeding program objectives and their own roles and
responsibilities; distribution and financial processes have been
reorganized for better transparency and oversight; and