The Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, has led Ghana’s delegation to Brazil to attend the 2nd Global Summit on School Meals Coalition.

At the summit, the Minister showcased the good work the Government of Ghana is doing in the area of school feeding, by providing hot and nutritious meals to children in government schools with the aim of addressing malnutrition, boosting immunity, and improving the well-being of children.

The initiative also seeks to reduce diseases, promote growth, increase enrolment, attendance, and retention in schools, while serving as a source of demand for locally produced foods, creating markets for farmers, and providing jobs for caterers.

Dr Lartey, in her address, said Ghana’s school feeding programme is providing meals for over 4.2 million children in 12,000 basic schools across the country.

The Gender Minister, who was a panellist at the summit, spoke on how research has directly impacted the establishment of the Ghana School Feeding Programme.

She also commended the moderator, Prof Bundy, for his contribution as part of Ghana’s initial research that informed decision-makers, leading to the country’s huge investment in the lives of schoolchildren through the programme and other social interventions.

Dr Lartey also shared plans on the way forward and some actionable steps to improve the programme.

The Minister and her delegation also held bilateral meetings with the delegations from Finland and Ethiopia.