{"id":102875,"date":"2024-11-21T06:03:27","date_gmt":"2024-11-21T06:03:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/index.php\/2024\/11\/21\/first-lady-rachel-ruto-launches-initiative-to-combat-hunger-in-schools\/"},"modified":"2024-11-21T06:03:27","modified_gmt":"2024-11-21T06:03:27","slug":"first-lady-rachel-ruto-launches-initiative-to-combat-hunger-in-schools","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/first-lady-rachel-ruto-launches-initiative-to-combat-hunger-in-schools\/","title":{"rendered":"First Lady Rachel Ruto Launches Initiative to Combat Hunger in Schools"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nakuru, Kenya, Nov 21\u2014First Lady Rachel Ruto has pledged to establish kitchen gardens in all public schools as part of her efforts to support the school feeding program. <\/p>\n

Speaking during the National World Children\u2019s Day celebration at Kaptembwa Primary School in Nakuru, she outlined her initiative, Championing the Voice of Children<\/em>, which aims to grow short-term nutritious crops like vegetables and herbs in school gardens.<\/p>\n

The initiative, in collaboration with state departments and partners, also plans to introduce fruit gardens in schools to boost children\u2019s fruit intake. <\/p>\n

For schools with arable land, the First Lady said her team would work with the Ministry of Agriculture to enhance food production within the institutions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are championing the sustainability component of school feeding through school-based food production programs targeting learning institutions,\u201d she said, adding that hunger and malnutrition are key barriers to children\u2019s learning and development.<\/p>\n

Delivering President William Ruto\u2019s message, she reiterated the government\u2019s commitment to ensuring every child in Kenya has access to education, health, and the opportunity to thrive free from the burden of hunger.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThe World Bank\u2019s Africa Pulse Report<\/em> in October 2024 revealed that seven in ten children in Sub-Saharan Africa miss out on pre-primary education due to hunger and malnutrition,\u201d she noted.<\/p>\n

Rachel, a trained teacher, reflected on the challenges of educating hungry children. \u201cHunger is not just a pain in the stomach; it\u2019s a barrier to learning, a stolen opportunity, and a deferred dream. We cannot afford to let hunger rob our children of their potential,\u201d she emphasized.<\/p>\n

The First Lady revealed the government\u2019s ambition to scale up the school feeding program, targeting 10 million daily meals by 2030. Currently, 2.4 million children benefit from the program, with plans to bridge the gap for the remaining 7.5 million.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe aim to provide 2 million additional meals to close this gap,\u201d she added, urging more partnerships to achieve universal school feeding.<\/p>\n

Government\u2019s Commitment to Child Welfare<\/strong><\/p>\n

Principal Secretary for Labour and Social Protection Joseph Motari echoed the need for a collective effort to nurture and empower children, aligning with this year\u2019s World Children\u2019s Day theme, Listen to the Voices of Our Future<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Motari condemned the rising cases of violence against children and urged parents to be more responsible, present, and supportive in their children\u2019s lives. \u201cWhile the government has the primary responsibility to protect children, parents and communities must also play their part,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He outlined government initiatives to safeguard children, including scaling up child-inclusive social protection services, enhancing child-friendly justice systems, and improving mechanisms for online safety.<\/p>\n

\u201cSignificant progress has been made through programs like Inua Jamii<\/em>, which provides cash transfers to vulnerable families,\u201d he said. The number of children covered under Inua Jamii<\/em> has nearly doubled from 259,000 in 2023 to 500,000 under the current administration.<\/p>\n

Additionally, the Presidential Secondary School Bursary Fund provides vulnerable students with Ksh 30,000 annually to cover school fees, ensuring no child misses school due to financial constraints.<\/p>\n

\u201cPresident Ruto remains deeply committed to improving the welfare of children and addressing their critical needs,\u201d Motari concluded.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nakuru, Kenya, Nov 21\u2014First Lady Rachel Ruto has pledged to establish kitchen gardens in all public schools as part of her efforts to support the school feeding program. Speaking during the National World Children\u2019s Day celebration at Kaptembwa Primary School in Nakuru, she outlined her initiative, Championing the Voice of Children, which aims to grow […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-102875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=102875"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102875\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=102875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=102875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=102875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}