School Feeding: FCTA enhances capacity training, action against food poisoning

*The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, in Nigeria, in conjunction with the FCTA activates a policy that consultants engaged as cooks on the national School Feeding programme must be trained on modern techniques of cooking and proper hygiene

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

Conceivably as a preventative measure against food illness resulting from poor hygiene, Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has advanced capacity training on adequate sanitisation and food handling practices for roughly 728 chefs involved in the ongoing homegrown school meal (feeding) programme in the FCT.

Two cooks from each of the six FCT Area Councils were chosen to receive training on personal and environmental sanitation while preparing food for the targeted group of school children, and then, return to their respective councils to pass on the training to others in order to have an impact on the programme, Independent report said.

FCTA Gate in Abuja

The FCTA authorities were said to have disclosed this development at a day’s nationwide documentation and training of cooks on the National Home Grown School Feeding Programme.

The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs organised the programme in conjunction with the FCT Administration, anchored by Resource Consultant, Obinna Alexander Onyeocha, in Abuja.

Kudu Dangana, FCT Programme Manager of the School Feeding programme, said the essence of the training was to ensure that the cook themselves and the food they are cooking are neatly organised so that they don’t give dirty or poisonous food to the children in the schools, report stated.

Dangana also noted that the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, in conjunction with the FCTA had come out with a policy that people engaged as cooks on the programme must be trained on modern techniques of cooking as well as maintaining proper hygiene.

The FCT Programme Manager said: “The School feeding programme in 2018 started with a sensitisation programme, and in 2019 cooks were selected from the six FCT Area councils. And every cook is expected to feed 150 learners.

“Why we are here today is mainly on sanitation; to train them on how to maintain the environment and ensure that themselves and the food they are cooking are neatly organised.

“So that they don’t give dirty or poisonous food to our children in the schools.”

Dangana further stated: “The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, in conjunction with the FCTA has come out with a policy that these people must be trained, and because we can’t train them all at the same time, it was decided that let two cooks be selected from each area council, as representatives to receive the training, and then go back to their respective councils to castigate the training down.

“I believe it will make an impact on the programme.”

He noted: “We have trained almost 728 cooks in the FCT, and we are still trying to do more because the essence of school feeding is to achieve four objectives; to increase enrollment in schools, boost the nutritional value of pupils, increase agricultural productivity, and create job opportunities, especially those doing nothing in the villages.

“You can see that through this venture (school feeding programme) a lot of people have been engaged as cooks- about 728, and more are still coming.”

Schools benefiting from the school feeding scheme

As regards the number of schools currently benefiting from the scheme in the FCT, the Programme Manager was quoted to have said that “by statistics, we have 497 schools covered by the programme in FCT alone, but the record will be more than that by now.

“As of the time we were recruiting, some schools had not taken off, and then after recruitment, many schools came to be, that’s why we will continue to recruit more so that virtually every school will be captured in the programme.

Dangana added: “And thank God, the FCT Minister of State, Dr. Ramatu Tijjani Aliyu, who is passionate about this, had ensured that everyone should be carried along and be fed in FCT, and she has approved memo to capture pupils of primary 4,5 and 6, to make sure that every school is captured.”

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