GFAR blog

YAP proposal #132: School Farms Programme (Alfred Godwin Adjabeng, Ghana)

Biography

I am Alfred Godwin Adjabeng from Ho, Ghana. I am a University of Cape Coast trained environmental scientist. I am the Executive Director of the Reach Out to Future Leaders movement and Programme Manager of School Farms Programme.

Project Description

Our School Farms Programme is a rural community-based school feeding support programme that empowers local community schools to grow their own food. At the same, we create space to help students gain practical skills and explore opportunities in agriculture.

Collaborations

School Farms Programme partners with local schools and local institutions (Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Ghana Education Service, Nutrition Office and the traditional leadership) to develop community-driven farms. These ensure a consistent food supply to keep schools open throughout the school year and able to provide nutritious meals and also offer experiential learning and technical training opportunities for young people in these schools.

Objectives

To reduce the feeding budget of the schools we work with, increase the nutritional value of the food served to students and equip students with practical agriculture skills for food security.

Methodology and Sustainability Strategy

SANYO DIGITAL CAMERAAcres of land were cultivated and 70% of the yield is used to feed the students. Thirty per cent of the yield is sold to an identified market and proceeds went into a fund. Twenty per cent of this fund is used to cultivate the next farming season and 10% is paid to the School Farms Programme secretariat for the programme’s continuous management.

The programme collaborates with local government institution like, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture that provides free technical advice to help increase yield and access to quality seeds. The community provides land where schools do not have land and hard labour as part of their communal service. There was a 40% reduction in the term (four-month) feeding budget of the school. By harnessing these resources from the community we have achieved remarkable results worth replicating in other communities.

In our work, we focus 60% of on school farms, 20% on community resource mobilization, 10% on local and international donor agencies, and 10% on government support. This idea is built on communities’ capacity and resilience to solve their own challenges with local resources and is self-sustaining.

Motivation for Intervention

In 2013, more than 60 public senior high schools in the three northern regions of Ghana delayed in reopening after vacation. Some schools faced threat of closure due to a lack of food to feed students. Others increased school fees to make up for the debts. This disrupted the educational curriculum and most students failed their final national exams.

There were many problems: rise in the cost of feeding, unreliability in the supply of food stuffs from markets, delay in the release of feeding support grant, inadequate allocated funds to schools to support the subsidization of the feeding budget, and institutional challenge in dealing with the challenge facing the school meals regime.

There is no efficient transfer of knowledge ‘on a hungry stomach’. Children in schools need energy to grow healthy, learn, and to aspire. The call to leadership and responsibility to ensure that no child in my community studies on a hungry stomach is my motivation to developing the School Farms Programme.

Measurement of Impact:

  1. The percentage reduction in the school feeds of students.
  2. The nutritional value of the food by nutrition indicator developed by Ghana Nutrition Office.
  3. Increase in enrollment.
  4. Number of jobs the programme creates.
  5. The number of students trained as agriculture entrepreneurs through our School Farms Club.

Outline for Implementation

  1. Selection of school
  2. Baseline studies
  3. Identification of local Collaborating institutions
  4. Development of Concept for the School
  5. Meeting with collaborators and memorandum of understanding development
  6. Registration of the local Ghana School Farms project with ROFLM
  7. Project implementation of School Farm

Budget:

Task Expense (USD) Timeline
Baseline Studies and Consultations: 250 01/01/17 to 02/02/17
School Farms Programme Club 1,000 03/03/17 to 03/12/17
Farm 3,000 15/02/17 to 02/07/17
Harvest 500 15/07/17
Evaluation and Monitoring 250 01/01/17 to 31/12/17

 

Blogpost and picture submitted by Alfred Godwin Adjabeng (Ghana): alfredadjabeng[at]gmail.com

The content, structure and grammar are at the discretion of the author only.

This post is published as proposal #132 of “YAP” – our “Youth Agripreneur Project”.

The first selection of the winners will be based on the number of comments, likes and views each proposal gets.

As a reader, you can support this speaker’s entry:

  • Leave a comment (question, suggestion,..) on this project in the comment field at the bottom of this page
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  • Spread this post via your social media channels, using the hashtag: #GCARD3

 

Have a look at the other “YAP” proposals too!


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Check out the side column for our current sponsors.
“YAP” is part of the #GCARD3 process, the third Global Conference on Agricultural Research for Development.

 

 

474 thoughts on “YAP proposal #132: School Farms Programme (Alfred Godwin Adjabeng, Ghana)”

      1. Alfred – I am so proud of you!!! As a UC Berkeley Alum – you are doing the right thing for your community!! We are all so happy for you!! and rooting for you!

    1. Alfred and Team, I’m really impressed 😊-especially with the sustainability strategy. Best wishes.

    1. Thanks Eli for your observation. Over the past three years of our work in the Northern Regions of Ghana. We have focused on rain-fed agriculture. We are yet to integrate irrigation systems. This could double our return on investment. Thanks for your add.

  1. This Project is one of the most impactful projects I’ve come across in Ghana. I was part of the pilot phase implementation and I will urge everyone to support this project. It feeds and attracts hundreds of students towards education and agriculture.

  2. Great Job! It’s encouraging to know we have generational thinkers like you in our time. I believe this project would go a long way to reduce over reliance on the goverment. And also encourage other young people to start something on their own. Thx for blazing the trail!

  3. This is a unique project that has come up just at the right time.
    I’m in support of it and I even look forward to some collaborations.
    Let’s do it

  4. This is a unique project and initiative that has come up just at the right time.
    I’m in support of it and I even look forward to some collaborations.
    Let’s do it

  5. There is the need that children especially in deprived communities in Ghana and Africa learn in good and sound minds. Their nutritional needs must be met to give them the nutrients for a sound mind. such children also need to be encouraged because their parents may prefer them staying on their farm lands. I believe this project is in the right direction to encourage our children to enroll and will benefit the government of Ghana because it will complement the government efforts. All stake holders should support this intervention.

    Good project initiative !!! Team ROFLM

  6. Great initiative. As an environmentalist I know how climate change can impact food security and agriculture so am looking forward to know about the challenges with the climate and how you are adapting

    1. Thanks so much “Ghana Youth Environmental Movement”. We have indeed faced some challenges with climate variability and unpredictable rainfall patterns. We’ve been able to adapt for the part three years through the collaboration of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture extension service. They were very helpful in providing technical advice on where, when and how to get the best out of our investment.

      We working hard to also invest in irrigation systems in order to double our return on investment. We are really concern and worried about climate change. We seek opportunity to join in advocating against anti-climate policies.

      Thanks for your input.

  7. I am totally impressed by this idea and how it help solve a societal problem. This initiative will go a long way to compliment the School Feeding Program by the Government. Cheers!! to all those involved in making Ghana a better place!!!

    1. Thanks Mr. Quagraine for your testimony. It’s our ultimate goal to ensure that no child studies on a hungry stomach. It’s a call to purpose and responsibility.

      We will complement the Government’s School Feeding Program and also help students gain practical skills in agriculture for future security.

      Please join us take action. #ZeroHunger, a Right.

  8. Great project especially for students. I would support anytime only if I had money. My only request is that we gear this project towards preventing environmental degradation. And also using these project to find means and ways to purify and renew our natural resources.

    1. Mr. Ekame. I completely agree with you. We will be investing into sustainable agriculture. Students engaged on these farms will also be taught how they can prevent environmental degradation. The earth is our home and sustainable agriculture is its friend. lol.

      Thanks for your add. God bless.

  9. God bless you for this great social intervention.
    Please does the budget cover only one farming season?

    1. The budget above only covers for a year. We will be cultivating in two seasons. We will also be exploring integrating irrigation systems so as to double our investment. Thanks for your add.

    1. Thanks Hikmat for your testimony. Good nutrition improves children’s mental and psychological health and prepares them for active teaching and learning work. We must not deprive our children from growing healthy in order to aspire. God bless.

  10. Well done senior…. wanted to support this worthwhile project but unfortunately I don’t meet the requirements. Whatever the outcome, you’re a winner….. proud of you!!

  11. Well done Alfred and your team. You guys are great social entrepreneurs. I hope you win this grant to enable this great work to be replicated in other communities.

  12. Great project on various levels ..providing nutrition, reducing expenditure of schools , creating jobs and teaching students about agriculture .let’s all support this . God bless you

  13. Is a good work done by Alfred ! Am in total support of this project ,because this can keep students in school and also help them to do little agriculture since it’s no more a full program at the SHS .Alfred God bless you .👍👍👍👍👍👍.

  14. Very detailed and articulated proposal. Yes, have heard a lot of great impacts this project has had in promoting the nutritional and physical wellbeing of the students. I’m also aware of its capacity to reduce the negative impact of food insecurity on the continent of Africa. If this project is supported, it will go a long way in helping to achieve the SDGs, particularly, goal 1,2,4 and 13. To this end, I hereby endorse Alfred for this funding opportunity.

    1. Thanks Adeniyi for your testimony. We are also working in the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals. This provides us some information to be successful by strategically aligning with the global goals.

  15. Alfred. Kudos to you and the team. This is a remarkable social enterprise. I pray you receive financial support to further your agenda. Got a couple of questions though. Under Methodology and Sustainability Strategy, you indicated “There was a 40% reduction in the term (four-month) feeding budget of the school.” Please elaborate a bit on that. Was this impact data from a pilot stage and how many schools participated in this fiscal impact assessment? Secondly,I inferred from your budget, that timeline from “Farm” (I assumed that encompass the whole value chain from cultivation to farm maintenance) to Harvest is 5 months i.e. 15/02/17 to 15/07/17. How feasible is this timeline and what kind of crops do you plan to cultivate? I also made a few observations in respect of Impact Measurement as well but I think this should set you off journey of Kaizen. Listen, whatever happens, understand this; you are a winner already for this remarkable effort. Just stay commitment to continuous improvement and never give up! Ghana is proud of you.

    1. I am glad!

      School Farms Program is an ongoing program, and every year we add on new innovative ideas to make it more efficient and sustainable. Our School Farms Program is in Savelugu Senior High School and Lassia-Tuolu Senior High School all in the Northern Regions of Ghana.

      With an investment of about GHc 800 we had GHc 2000 as return on investment. The impact on the overall feeding budget of the schools by term which is a four-month academic period was averaged as 40%. We work to focus on the staple crops of the communities we work with in order to get market for the 30% and also cultivate some vegetables and fruits.

      The northern regions of Ghana have just a season and this is always within a 5 months period for either corn or sorghum as was piloted in Savelugu and Lassia-Tuolu. We plan to move to the south of Ghana and they have two raining seasons, so we are expecting more on investment. This is obviously a challenge when depending on rain-fed agriculture. We have plans of irrigating our farms too and in the near future.

      I am glad and appreciate these observations. You seems to have so much interest and expertise in this field. Kindly join us make a difference. No child should study on a hungry stomach.

  16. Great job we can only ensure food security on the African continent of young people engage themselves in agribusiness i am proud of this inniciative

  17. In order to ensure food security on the African continent young people need to be involved in Agribusiness I like this inniciative

  18. “The call to leadership and responsibility to ensure that no child in my community studies on a hungry stomach is my motivation to developing the School Farms Programme.”
    I very much like this project and this quote alone should keep the support coming

  19. Ofcourse there is definately going to be little absorption on the part of the student when hunger sets in. Great initiative keep the good work up.

  20. Great project. It’s always encouraging to see you and the Team solving sociatal problems.

    1. That to us is fulfilling purpose and making the world a better place. Join us take action. We must work to ensure No child should study on a hungry stomach. Thanks Ernest for you comment.

  21. This is an innovative and essential project that will sustain children growth in the education system through food supply at school. Worth to be chosen.

  22. Awesome project guys! Ghana needs more of such entrepreneurship projects. All the best.

  23. You have my full support! Kudos to you and the team for your relentless efforts to fight hunger.

  24. For a young entrepreneur, Alfred is doing great. The school farm project is a very important project to start with. ROFL is touching a lot of lives and deserves the grant to aid it reach out to people who need the help. Africa need lots of young people focusing in this direction.

  25. One of the greatest challenges facing secondary schools in Ghana is how to meet their feeding deficit as well as cost of feeding. Many schools owe ‘food contractors’ huge sums of money. I agree that this is certainly a laudable project that would reduce schools’ feeding budget and increase the nutritional value of the food served to students.

    Students being equipped with practical agriculture skills while at school will make them begin to understand that Agriculture is not for the ‘village folks’ and that there is dignity in farming

    I like the idea of using it to generate funds internally to meet other school running costs making funding of schools a shared responsibility and the partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture is in the right direction

  26. This project is innovative and crucial to these times where food security is of utmost concern to all and sundry. I support and endorse it.

  27. Great initiative from a dedicated mind. This project couldn’t have come at a better time considering how education in the country is negatively affected by lack of funds to sustain the school feeding programme. Kudos to you!!!

  28. Alfred Adjabeng
    Good job. This is a great initiative and can’t wait to see the impact it’s gonna have.
    I congratulate you and your team for making this happen.

  29. Alfred kudos to you and your team! Continue to make Ghana proud.
    Wishing you the very best!

  30. You have always proven, and particularly through this project, that education fails insofar as it does not stir in students a sharp awareness of their responsibility to the community. However small this effort might seem, it is something I foresee to becoming replicated across all regions in Ghana to sustain the gains we have made in students enrolment.

  31. Congratulations dear Alfred! Your job and projects are highly inspiring. God bless you. Go ahead!!!

  32. Great Initiative..Indeed the rural schools enjoy from their own plantation and more so attain practical agricultural skill…Enabling them appreciate the impact of quality agricultural practices to the rural and economic development.#BlessYourDream

  33. This is such a great and innovative project.
    I believe in this project and I encourage all to support.
    Thumbs up Alfred

  34. Great job guys. Children studying on empty stomach is totally unacceptable. They definately need their glucose levels up in the morning for proper brain functioning. God bless you for your worthy cause.

  35. Great job guys. Children studying on empty stomach is totally unacceptable. They definately need their glucose levels up in the morning for proper brain functioning. God bless you.

  36. Great job Agriculture is key in food security and alleviating hungar. This project will not only help our youths stay in school but will go a long way to teach them new skills that they can use in future. Agriculture is the future lets invest in it

  37. Great project Agriculture is the key to food security and sustainability. Agriculture is the future lets invest in it

  38. Good day Alfred,

    This is the way to go! You are a passionated one and your impact is clearly visible on local society. Keep on going! I 100% support this project!

    Binta Baldé (MWF2015)

  39. Agric is the backbone of every economy. Encouraging student to embrace it is in the good direction. The will effectively reduce hunger amongst participating student. Great job.

  40. This is not only innovative but also forward-looking. I am imagining scaling up with returns from an initial investment and you can be rest assured of sustainability. Well done Alfred and the team and all the best.

  41. This is a brilliant attempt Alfred. And as far as it has a benign objective of supporting humanity, I have no doubt that this project will continue to
    flourish.
    That is one way that mother nature rewards all who care for any of its children. Interestingly, you are taking care of two essential bodies; humanity
    and the Environment. Please don’t be surprised if within the next 5-10 years you are overwhelmed with abundance to effectively carry out all
    aspirations of the group.
    I wish you well.

  42. Am in strong support of this initiative! Keep up the the good work, you have no idea of the impact you are making in the lives of those children. No child should go to school on an empty stomach…and you are walking that talk! We need more of such initiatives!!!

  43. Great job man. I pray that the project become successful because it will go a long way to help our school children.

  44. Great work mate, looking forward to seeing your ideas implemented fully. Wel done

    1. I believe this program has already taken full shape ansnd only need some support for upscaling. Great program with a strong social impact

    1. We are already in three schools in each region respectively and plan to replicate it in two schools per region over a five-year term. Close to 100 schools in five years time. It’s possible. Thanks Felix for your support.

  45. Wow, such an innovative approach to solve the problem of food insecurity in Ghana and the continent as a whole. I hope you win to implement this brilliant idea. Good Bless You

  46. This sounds great Alfred,I can see the energy you and your colleagues are putting in this project. This ideas are not to be wasted you deserve the final reward my brother. May God be with you.

  47. Great Initiative.I Hope one day we can assist your project to get the needed financial support to make it sustainable.

  48. kudos to u Godwin. sustaining the future development requires the good and hard work of the current generation. Arise Ghana youth to support Godwin.
    food security is one of the keys to sustainable development. i always say if an hungry man is an angry man then our peace will be compromise.

  49. Wonderful work, never give up! This a good way to ensure sustainable devlopment of Africa

  50. Wow! This is a great project. Deprived pupils will not study with empty stomach or prefer to drop out of school because of hunger. Alfred and team keep up the good work. My support is with you. God bless you.

  51. I’m proud of you Alfred, very few youth have enough guts to tackle such a sensitive and yet crucial problem, you are paving a way for us to see how much effort we would actually have to put to make Africa better, you are showing us that we have to radically and physically challenge the status quo, keep up the good work brother!

  52. FOOD SECURITY UIS KEY FOR EVERY NATION AND CONTINENT.
    THIS PROJECT IS IN THE LONG RUN, GOING TO PROVIDE FOOD AND STORED FOR THE COUNTRRY.
    I RATE IT 5 STARS.

  53. A great project indeed worthy of support as it fundamentally addresses the issue of retention through community -led school farms. I endorse this initiative . Congrats Alfred

  54. From Botswana, we join the world in congratulating you for this great initiative. We will be following it closely to learn from our African counterparts. We wish all the best and to the beneficiaries, keep up the good work

    1. Awww. I am glad and humbled. Thanks for your support and wish. Botswana is dear to my heart just as all other African countries.We must work to ensure that no child studies on a hungry stomach. Join us take action. God bless.

  55. I had the opportunity to meet the team in Savelugu Senior High a school in the Northern Region of Ghana and i was amaze to see the impact and Vision of the team. Keep rising Alfred

  56. Awesome project Bruv. You always selfless and have brought a future problem to this present. God bless you and more innovative actions. We all got you back from nima, new town, kotobabi through to lapaz.

  57. woooooooooooooooow, wonderful one there…im more than proud of you people. More grace to you all

  58. Really impressed with your project especially with the sustainability strategy. Best wishes Alfred and team as you support the agenda of ensuring Ghanaian pupils study on full stomachs

  59. I think the objectives of the project is awesome. I call it the Trinity of Purpose: 1.To reduce the feeding budget of the schools we work with.
    2. Increase the nutritional value of the food served to students.
    3. Equip students with practical agriculture skills for food security.

    It goes without saying that, this project has the real potential of cultivating an interest of farming among the young students. Thus, we will have more people venturing into that sector thereby contributing to food security. I believe that the School Farms Program should be formally adopted by government and made a national policy.

    1. That’s the end game. We will be able to work with government, develop a national policy towards securing school meals. We must ensure no child studies on a hungry stomach. Thanks Awuah for this feedback. God bless.

  60. In my earlier comment I suggested that the program be formally adopted by government and made a national policy. As a national policy, the program could be varied to suit each peculiar community. Thus there will be variations in the different types of agriculture depending on the community – animal farming, crop farming, aquaculture etc. May I add that, while the program offers practical experience on farming, there is the need to expose these young ones to the business of agriculture (agribusiness). I believe that it is one of the ways to place them on the path to self-employment. With that knowledge too, they will be resourceful persons to the economy especially in the area of agriculture.

  61. You are doing a great work. I know it is not easy to enter into agricultural sector and arriving at that magnitude will definitely involve much work. your hands are indeed involved in building a better tomorrow.

    1. Thanks Alfred. Great to see your comment. You are doing so much great work. I am honored for this thumb up. Join us take action in ensuring that no child studies on a hungry stomach. God bless.

      Kindly like the post too,

  62. Congratulation to the team for this program. I hope you are intending to expand to other countries like Burkina Faso because lesser and lesser schools are providing food to children yet they are often needy and not able to follow courses because of hunger.

  63. I have always had this confidence in Alfred and this team! This is such a wonderful project. One that is unique in its own merit and designed to suit our part of the world. Congrats friends and keep up the spirit to helping Mother Africa. Wish you best in this endeavour. Bravo!

  64. Wish you good Luck Alfred. This is a great Job Ghana and beyond must see and Cherish. This is great. Keep that Guts Up!!

  65. There is no efficient transfer of knowledge ‘on a hungry stomach’. Children in schools need energy to grow healthy, learn, and to aspire. The call to leadership and responsibility to ensure that no child in my community studies on a hungry stomach is my motivation to developing the School Farms Programme.

  66. Our School Farms Programme is a rural community-based school feeding support programme that empowers local community schools to grow their own food. At the same, we create space to help students gain practical skills and explore opportunities in agriculture.

  67. The lack of School meals affects access to education, efficient teaching and learning work especially in poor communities. Communities hold the power to solve their greatest challenges, by harnessing communities’ capacity and resilience to solve their own challenges with local resources is key to developing, and implementing any self-sustaining school feeding policy alternative.

  68. Great job Alfred. We are proud of you and we wish all the best in your quest. May the Almighty God be with you.

  69. This is mind blowing….Ghana Schools farms project is having such amazing global impact through this initiative. Engaging in agriculture to feed students as well as acquiring skills in agric….. This is what Africa and the world needs, positive minded people… Keep it up Alfred Adjabeng # Ghana Schools Farm Project

  70. Yes, no child should learn on a hungry stomach. True talk. Really proud to have worked with u and I miss working with u. God bless u for such an initiative. Keep up the God work.

  71. This initiative in my opinion is promoting two important rights; the right to food and the right to education, which are key factors for development of any country!
    Please support this School Farm project to achieve #zero hunger in schools!

  72. Aww innovative project! Teaching schoolchildren to value and appreciate the food they eat as they learn, hands-on, about its production from seed to table is quit awesome. Great job Alfred, all the best.

  73. Wow your project is innovative! teaching schoolchildren to value and appreciate the food they eat as they learn, hands-on, about its production from seed to table is quite awesome. Great Alfred!!

  74. The Holy Bible makes it clear that on the judgement day,The Lord Jesus Christ shall make a categorical statement to some people that “when I was hungry you never fed me,I was naked but you never you clothed me,I was put into prison but you never visited me……..”. So I like and support such an essential good corporate ctlitizenship being undertaken. May God bless you abundantly.

  75. Good work done so far. This project is good one because you are not only trying to feed students; but you also telling them to put on the spirit of working hard to gain what they want than to depend on others for it. God bless and support you so.

  76. Alfred, this is a great step you’ve taken, this is an awesome project. However, how are you able to engage the student to work on the farm? Is it on school hours or on weekends? Also, you seem to focus on the northern part of Ghana, what about the southern part?

  77. This work is so incredibly needed. The dividends of this program impacts just not the quality and experience of education, but improves the trajectory and overall well-being and outcome of students. Alfred is a bold, visionary, resilient and innovative leader and in his hands you can guarantee meaningful and sustainable impact. I am a strong believer in this project and give it my highest recommendation. Onward Alfred!

  78. This is a highly recommendable project and a subject l greatly share with Alfred. I had the opportunity to meet Alfred as Mandela Washington Fellows in the summer of 2015 at UC Berkeley, USA. He explained this project with great passion, energy and zeal to see children and greater communities on full tummies with nutritious food.
    Personally l view this as investment extraordinary and a cause that should be supported wholeheartedly not only that its well written but it touches and builds communities ; sets Africa on the right path of sustainable development ..and gels in well with sustainable development goals as enunciated by the united nations. I render my full support and have no hesitation in recommending such a project to get the funding and unwavering support it deserves by all people and organizations fighting hunger in their different spheres.
    Thanks Alfred for this and continue pushing from the Ghanaian side and very soon we will conquer Hunger in Africa.

    1. Heya Promise. It’s great to meet you here. I am glad we have your support for our School Farms Program. Sustainability is at the heart of our projects. Our program will soon become a global model for solving hunger in schools.

      We have taken notice of your ideas and will fully incorporate it in our School Farms Program. Thanks for your add.

  79. The northern regions of Ghana have just a season and this is always within a 5 months period for either corn or sorghum as was piloted in Savelugu and Lassia-Tuolu. We plan to move to the south of Ghana and they have two raining seasons, so we are expecting more on investment. This is obviously a challenge when depending on rain-fed agriculture. We have plans of irrigating our farms too and in the near future.

  80. It goes without saying that, this project has the real potential of cultivating an interest of farming among the young students. Thus, we will have more people venturing into that sector thereby contributing to food security. I believe that the School Farms Program should be formally adopted by government and made a national policy.

  81. This is a solution to a problem i personally faced in school in the Upper East region. 100% support!!

  82. Over the last three years, I have developed special interest in school feeding and I have spent these years in engaging communities to find sustainable solutions to the challenge of feeding students in schools.

  83. I have read extensively about researches that focus on providing alternative solutions to government-funded school feeding. I also appreciate to an extent some existing school feeding solutions ranging from the World Food Programme’s, Home Grown School Feeding (HGSF) to Ghana’s National School Feeding Programme. They all hold some prospects and can achieve more, I believe, if built on communities’ capacity and resilience to solve their own challenges with local resources. This to me is key to developing, and implementing any self-sustaining school feeding policy alternative.

  84. There is absolutely no need to engage in a back and forth argument on whether school feeding is important to improving access to both education and nutrition. There is enough scientific evidence that relates the frequency of school attendance or enrollment to school feeding in most underdeveloped communities and the role good nutrition plays in the mental development of children in schools. There is no efficient transfer of knowledge ‘on a hungry stomach’.

  85. Children in schools need energy to grow healthy, learn and aspire. If you have ever gone to school hungry and with no option than to study on a hungry stomach, it will be easier for you to appreciate the importance of school feeding in under-resourced or less developed communities.

  86. The Millennium Development Goals came to an end in 2015 giving way to a more ambitious Sustainable Development Goals. The global goals aim at transforming our world by 2030 and the conversation about zero tolerance to hunger has been deepened and given more attention.

  87. SHS Students in the three northern regions of Ghana who benefit from feeding grants provided by government spend less than 2 years out of the three years in school. This is due to inability of various governments to release these grants for the schools to purchase food for the students and therefore resort closing down the schools when they have no food. These same students are expected to write the same final exams with their compatriots who spend almost all the three years in school. We need to act. This is the action. #Education #ZeroHunger, a right! 100% Support.

  88. It has become evident that there will always exist a feeding grant gap since allocations to the education sector is limited. For this reason, its imperative that such a gap be filled if we want to avoid the perennial problem of sending students home for delay in release of feeding grants. This will intended safe guard the educational sector and cut down on the incidence of creditors chasing heads of institutions. It will also lessen the burden on parents to constantly supplement feeding grants at PTA meetings. I think we finally got it right. Hats off Alfred.

  89. The new global goals has given more focus and weight to global and national interventions aimed at ensuring that hunger is eliminated in our lifetime. It is in this light that supporting school feeding must be given a critical attention to ensure that it works effectively. There has been a lot of concern raised across the globe for government to increase support to funding school meals.

  90. The program’s main objectives are to; reduce the feeding budget of the schools we work with, increase the nutritional value of the food served to students and equip students with practical agriculture skills for food security.

  91. Reach Out to Future Leaders Movement, the organization behind School Farms Program, creates a space for community dialogue where even every necessary and available resource of a community is tapped into ensuring that the program receives the energy it needs to be successful.

  92. Communities’ resources can be harnessed to develop self-sustaining intervention that addresses communities’ greatest challenges. Community cohesion has always been a well proven conceptual model for practical sustainable development. School Farms Program’s works on this model.

  93. Rather than relying on only government’s subvention like school feeding grants, the School Farms Program partners with schools and local institutions to develop community-driven farms that offer experiential learning and technical training opportunities to young people.

  94. The School Farms Program collaborates with schools and local institutions to develop community-driven farms that offer experiential learning and technical training opportunities to youth while also ensuring consistent food supply that will keep schools open and able to provide nutritious meals throughout the school year.

  95. I’m very optimistic about the prospects of funding school meals through harnessing local resources. It requires truthfulness, community cohesion and innovation. Communities hold the power to solve their greatest challenges.

  96. I want to join take action to reduce the feeding budget of the schools we work with, increase the nutritional value of the food served to students and equip students with practical agriculture skills for food security. You have a great idea.

  97. School Farms Program will solve the challenge of school feeding in Ghana. I am glad you are working to help.

  98. Our School Farms Program will;
    1. Reduce the feeding cost of schools which will eventually result in the reduction in the cost of accessing quality education.
    2. Increase in the enrollment, interest and attendance to schools.
    3.Create job opportunities for local community members.
    4.Increase community cohesion and engagement for local development.

  99. Direct Beneficiaries:
    1. 10000 students will benefit from free school meals.
    2. 100 teachers will benefit from free school meals.
    Indirect Beneficiaries:
    1. Parents of these students will pay relatively less in accessing quality education.
    2. Community: Illiteracy rate in these communities will reduce with time.

  100. This is a very Good initiative and sets your organisation as an international exemplar.. that youth led initiatives through the support of our governments can move Africa forward

  101. Wow! Alfred and your entire team. I am encouraged by the work you do. Hopefully when I visit Ghana I can get to see first hand the social impact you’re creating.
    Keep the work. #WeHaveaContinentToBuild

  102. This is a great project, with real impact. It is also very sustainable as indicated in the write-up. Good job Alfred and team!

  103. Great intervention. I believe this isn’t just an initiative because it is of global concern. I’ll employ all who have the capacity sustain this ingenuity of global concern. Great work brother. Thanks for seeing the need for change and redesigning the process and procedures to fit the times. Another pace setting for the generations

  104. Alfred you have a very good and innovative project making a strong impact in Northern Ghana.Funds from SADA should rather be coming to you and your students for such a novel project to support your efforts in producing food for the localization of the Government’s school feeding program.Papa Kyei.

  105. waooooow
    i knew you will go far with this project…fantastic and great job done so far…solid behind you comrade.

  106. Its an innovation worth supporting. If youth appreciate agriculture and are involved in a program such as this, they will be less opposed to the idea of choosing farming as a profession. We use to cultivate such farms back in school but on small scales that only teachers used them.

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