FOOD SECURITY IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS.

FOOD SECURITY IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS.

JANE MUGAMBI 29TH Jan 2012.

Monsanto a USA Non-governmental organization has started a programme with Ico-seed to farm vegetables and fruits in secondary schools for food security in the Country.

Monsanto’s Corporate Affairs officer Kinyua M’Mbijiwe said that the reason for taking the programme to secondary school’s was to make sure that they are food secured and improve the nutrition in schools and also to avert the strikes that were related to food .

HE said that 125 schools in the Central and Eastern provinces are in the programme adding that more are going to be incorporated to improve the nutrition citing that before the end of the year they will be having over 5000 schools.

“The USA government through Monsanto is helping mostly secondary schools to improve their nutrition so as students can learn while being comfortable and also provide the necessary nutrients needed by making sure that vegetables and fruits are available at the schools garden where even students can pick fro themselves since the economy has gone very high making it hard for poor families to afford a balanced diet that is why we are targeting schools” added M’Mbijiwe.

M’Mbijiwe went on to say that the programme is funded with 180 US dollars citing that for a start, they have initiated kales to see how they are going to do even in raid and semi-arid areas using Israel method to grow.

HE said that in Kitui, Isiolo and other parts in Northeastern where water is a problem, have a plan to dig a dam that is going to supply water using the Israel method to make them food sufficient.

“We are targeting the dry areas so that Kenyans can be food secure, in North eastern part of the country we are planning to dig a dam where the residents will be irrigating their land using the waters using Israel method or drip irrigation to grow different fruits and vegetables” Added the Corporate officer

He said that students will assist pass the method to the community to make it food sufficient saying that the erratic weather is affecting many.

The officer said that the programme is in Tanzania, Uganda and is expected to spread to other countries.

HE said that water supply is all through despite the weather and also the time since the pipes have some holes that drip the required amount of water.

Bernard Ng’ang’a the principal of Kang’aru Babla secondary school said that since the programme was started in his school students have been able to get a balanced diet saying that the cost of purchases has also gone down.

He said that the students are getting enough food citing that when the food was being cooked using cabbages, very few used to take but now with Sukumawiki they are asking for more.

“The programme is very good since students are able to get the required nutrients and enough food pointing out that most of them who are in the school come from either a poor background or an average family where some even go for two days without food” added the principal.

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