By: Draxon Maloya
A project implemented by HarvestPlus, aimed at improving the nutritional content of school meals through biofortified crops, has led to a significant increase in school enrolment and improved pass rates among learners in some primary schools and Early Childhood Development Centres (ECD) in Malawi.
The project, which has benefited 318 schools in five district education zones, namely; Rumphi, Mzimba North, Mzimba South, Lilongwe East and Machinga aims to expand access to biofortified crops and foods for healthy school meals through school gardens and production by local communities.
During a field visit to Rumphi District, HarvestPlus Malawi Country Manager, Dellings Phiri, emphasized the importance of collaboration in initiating home-grown school feeding programs.
Phiri highlighted the project’s focus on sustainable impact through nutrition education and training for students, communities, schools, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
“The project’s long-term vision is to increase access to high-quality nutritious foods for school-age children, especially girls, and their immediate households, ensuring improved nutritional and health status, schooling outcomes, and economic opportunities,” said Phiri.
Stakeholders, including Mbulunji Primary School Management Committee Chairperson, Akim Harawa, and Group Village Headman Shumba, praised the project’s methodology and inclusive approach, which promotes smallholder procurement and nutrition-sensitive foods.
Isaac Nyirongo, Schools Health and Nutrition Coordinator for Rumphi District Council, commended the program’s inclusive approach, which prioritizes smallholder procurement and nutrition-sensitive foods.
“These initiatives are crucial components in maintaining the project’s momentum and impact collaborating with a range of multi-sector stakeholders, including smallholder farmers, agro-dealers, aggregators, processors, and food suppliers, to enhance access to healthy meals and nutrition education,” Nyirongo explained.
He further emphasized the importance of capacity-building initiatives, such as training on composite manure production, in ensuring the sustainability of the project beyond its completion.
The program is, designed to increase access to nutritious food in schools for 1.2 million children across Kenya, Tanzania, and Malawi, made possible through a partnership between HarvestPlus and AGRA, with generous support from the Rockefeller Foundation of the United States of America, under the project titled “Advancing Availability of Bio-fortified Foods for Institutional Markets.”
In Malawi, the project has been successfully implemented with multiple key components, budgeted to a tune of US$400,000.
