Government feeds millions of needy school children daily, said the Deputy Minister of Education.
Enver Surty the Deputy Minister of Basic Education shared these sentiments at Sankopano Community Centre during the hand over of a rain water harvesting project to 15 schools in Alexandra. The project was donated to schools by Rand Water Foundation and Ministry of Water Affairs.
Commending the donation, the deputy minister said that with rain water being made available, more children would be fed therefore helping to improve their energy levels, school performance and enhance their general physical wellness. Surty further said before 1994, only 300 000 school children received supplementary meals but now, 9.2 million were fed every school day. “We will continue to work closely with the Water Affairs Department to explore other options for ensuring sustainable food production methods at schools and to date have created 12 000 school gardens which supply feeding schemes with vegetables and other food products,” he explained.
The deputy minister also urged schools to use the gardens as “laboratories” for physical and other science subjects. “This will encourage students to choose careers in science as the country needs more water, soil and environmental scientists who will improve national food security and environmental conservation,” reckoned the deputy minister.
He further disclosed that his department was completing and handing over a school to communities every week fully equipped with proper toilets, water system and state of the art technology. “This is part of our plan to introduce digital and interactive learning for every child irrespective of social status,” concluded Surty.
