The Honourable Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq has commenced the capturing of biometrics of primary school’s pupils to facilitate effectively the enumeration of beneficiaries of the NHGSFP in Borno State.
Farouq who was represent by Afiyatu Bello Gaya, Higher Senior Assistant Social Welfare Officer in Social Development of the Humanitarian Ministry said the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP), was launched by President Muhammadu Buhari in 2016 to recognize the social challenges in the country, decided to innovatively take proactive and decisive measures to fighting the effect of poverty and its attending consequences, following the consultations and research, he launched the implementation of the NSIP in four unique clusters that are integrated to provide impact. They are: the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT), the N-Power, the National Home Home Grown School Feeding Programme (NHGSFP) and Government Entrepneure Progamme (GEEP).
The Minister added that the NSIP is strategically designed to fully involved all stakeholders especially the State Government, were designed specifically to target the section of the vulnerable Nigerians that include the Youths, elderly persons, widows, poorest of the poor, children and micro business persons.
Nine (9) Million’s pupils are currently benefiting from one free nutritious meals a day during the school term nationwide. She noted that the Ministry now has the mandate of reaching an additional 5 million pupils by 2023.
According to her with 100,000 cooks employed and more than 100,000 small holder farmers participating in this value chain, the NHGSFP is a serious potential for the Social- economic development and it needs to be strengthened, scaled up and sustained nationwide.
She commended the State Government for its commitment in implementing the NHGSFP , while expressing delight over the Team as well as the key Stakeholders to do more to ensure more children benefit from the program. They include the National Bureau of Statistics, Ministry of Education, National Orientation Agency, National Population Commission, National Youth service Corps, UBEC and State Education Boards, are working jointly and closely to verify the existing numbers of beneficiaries on the programme and update the records for better effectiveness, transparency and accountability.
Earlier the representative of the Governor of Borno State Hajiya Amina Katagum who also doubled as the Focal Person for the State, said that the capturing of the pupils in public primary schools primary 1 to 3 across the state provide nutritious meals for them, adding that the state is targeting about 642,500 pupils at the 1,000 Housing Estate Primary school in Konduga LGA of the state.
The Headmaster of the school, Hauwa Yusuf Balami, said the feeding scheme has made pupils to be punctual in school. “most of the pupils here are from vulnerable families that lack feeding which has made a lot of them to stay back at school, but with the introduction of the feeding Programme, we have a greater turn out. We have already have about 827 pupils who are currently benefiting from the enrollment list of 1600, and is still counting and we hope the Federal Government and State Government would extend it to primary 4 to 6” she said.
A primary 1A Teacher, Aisha Abubakar, said the pupils are being fed everyday in the school by the authorities with variety of food, this was also confirmed by Ba’shu a pupil in the school.
Adeyemo Felicia
Chief Information Officer
For: DD (Information)
August 5, 2021
