The Gender, Children and Social Welfare Committee of Parliament, led by the Gender Minister, Dr. Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, has conducted a crucial monitoring exercise to assess the quality of meals served to basic school pupils under the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP).

The high-level delegation visited two key schools: Peduase Methodist School in the Eastern Region and Ayi Mensa Basic School in the Greater Accra Region, where they inspected the preparation and serving of the food and interacted with pupils and caterers.

Following the inspection, Gender Minister Dr. Agnes Naa Momo Lartey expressed satisfaction with the standards observed, attributing the improvement to rigorous oversight at multiple levels of governance.

Speaking to JoyNews after the exercise on Thursday, December 11, the minister stated:

“Largely, I would say that the quality has improved because of the consistent monitoring. The national team is monitoring, the regions are monitoring, and the zones are as well."

She further explained that the zonal and district representatives, as well as the chefs, are coordinating to ensure quality service but was quick to indicate that there was more room for improvement.

"It's been good so far. We are satisfied; largely we are satisfied, there are things we can do to make it better.”

The monitoring exercise is part of ongoing efforts to ensure that the GSFP, which serves millions of pupils across Ghana, delivers nutritious and safe meals essential for cognitive development and higher school retention rates.

Proposed 'Table Manners' Intervention

The minister also revealed that, as part of efforts to holistically strengthen the programme's impact beyond just nutrition, the ministry has proposed a new social intervention focused on pupils’ eating habits.

This initiative is currently awaiting parliamentary approval.

Dr. Lartey elaborated on the plan, noting that it aims to instil social skills despite the high enrolment rates in many schools:

“There are a few things that we are trying to put into the programme to ensure that they get some table manners taught as part of the school feeding programme. In some places, the high enrolment rate makes it difficult but at least whilst you serve them and they are eating, when you teach them, even when they are sitting in their, let me say, little corner, they will be able to know that 'this is what you do when you are at a table; this is what you don't do when you are at a table.' So these are some of the small things that we want to place in it.”

Attorney General Assures Future Leaders

During the visit, Attorney General and Minister of Justice Dr Dominic Ayine also interacted directly with the pupils, assuring them of the government’s unwavering commitment to their well-being and future success.

Dr Ayine linked the importance of the GSFP directly to the nation’s future leadership:

“The reason why His Excellency John Dramani Mahama has ensured that the school feeding programme has not only continued but has been improved is to make sure that you can have healthy bodies and have healthy minds so you can study to become the attorneys general of the future. You can study to become the gender ministers of this country. You can study to be who you want to become.”

The GSFP, established under the Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 2), aims to boost food security and poverty reduction while increasing enrolment, attendance, and retention in public basic schools.

The comprehensive monitoring by the Gender, Children and Social Welfare Committee underscores Parliament's commitment to ensuring the programme's objectives are met efficiently.