The Busia County Government’s Department of Education and Industrial Skills Development (ISD) has lauded the efforts put in place by World Vision to support the Otuoma Nutri-care feeding program in Angurai Division in Teso North.
While receiving bags of beans worth Sh900, 000 to be distributed to 58 Early Childhood Development Center (ECDE) centres in Angurai Division, the County Executive Committee Member for the Department Beatrice Nakholi said besides the donation from the World Vision, the County Government would give an additional 6,770 kilograms of rice, 400 litres of cooking oil and 16 bales of salt.
“World Vision is the first donor in Busia County to come out and support our feeding programme. Thank you so much World Vision. As a county we can’t take this gesture for granted and since we are partnering, the county will give 6,770kgs of rice, 16 bales of salt and 400 litres of oil,” said Nakholi.
She elaborated that the programme, known as the homegrown solution, was meant to promote farmers in Busia, and whatever was grown in Busia would be eaten by the Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) children.
“I urge all parents to at least plant a quarter an acre of beans and orange-fleshed sweet potatoes to help supplement the diet and allow the programme to continue as this will help fight the poverty index in our county,” she noted.
Other than just providing food to the school-going learners, the CECM noted that the programme was also meant to fight malnutrition among children citing statistics showing a lot of children in Busia were stunted and underweight affecting their growth cycle to even adulthood.
Her remarks were echoed by Ms Grace Ogaga, from the Support Community Engagement sponsorship project in Angurai.
“World Vision is privileged to host the county team led by CECM Nakholi and the main agenda is to ensure that children have proper nutrition in schools,” she said, while promising to work towards ensuring that activities being implemented in the area bring impact to the child that World Vision serves.
“I know this programme will help retain children in schools and also bring about high enrollment, and bring regular school attendance among children,” she emphasized.
Besides foodstuffs, learners also received learning material from World Vision.
By Absalom Namwalo
