By Esther Wright
A delegation from Germany, including officials from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), and the World Food Programme (WFP), on October 29, 2024, visited two schools in Dibia Chiefdom: Roman Catholic Primary School and Sierra Leone Muslim Brotherhood School. These institutions are participants in the Home-grown School Feeding Programme, aimed at improving educational outcomes and linking local smallholder farmers to markets.
This visit follows a significant donation of €9 million from the German government to support the WFP’s school feeding initiative over the next five years. The programme currently provides daily hot meals to over 29,000 primary school children across 136 schools, ensuring students can focus on their education rather than hunger.
During the visit, Dr. Sabine Lindermann, Senior Policy Officer for Sierra Leone and Liberia at BMZ, expressed her enthusiasm for witnessing the programme’s positive impact. “The children are really happy to come to school because they have something to eat,” she noted, highlighting the motivation of women farmers producing orange-fleshed sweet potatoes (OFSP) for the initiative. Dr. Lindermann also suggested the potential for expanding the programme to additional districts.
As part of the tour, the delegation visited the Rochen Farmers Association, where farmers shared their experiences with the Home-grown School Feeding Programme, which has enhanced their market access and improved income and food security. The delegation observed an innovative mobile money payment system that fosters transparency and timely transactions between schools and local farmers, further boosting local economic growth.
The visit culminated in a lunchtime event where delegation members served meals to students, who expressed gratitude for the nutritious food sourced from local farmers. The day concluded with a groundbreaking ceremony for 57 new kitchens and storage facilities, marking a significant step toward improving school infrastructure in the region.
