Our Wa sponsor site became concerned about the numbers of children in their community who are underweight and malnourished.
“Children in remote schools experience food insecurity due to financial hardships and restricted access to resources,” says site director Pele. “Due to challenges facing families, many children are unable to get nutritious meals to eat to improve their health and particularly for the development of their brains. This eventually affects both their health and the ability to learn. These children may drop out of school because of low marks. Access to wholesome meals is crucial for a child’s general wellbeing and academic achievement.”
Thanks to your support, Chalice and the Wa site created a feeding program for children aged 4-10 in two local schools, Bankpama and Kuukyileyir.
The children eat a daily meal every school day for a year. The meals are cooked with locally available foods such as red and black beans, soya, maize, peanuts, brown rice, and milk. The children in kindergarten eat porridge made from a thick powder locally known as tombrown. Tombrown is made from a mix of cereals (e.g. corn, millet) and legumes. The children also eat at least two eggs per week.
“Chalice has ensured that impoverished children in deprived rural schools in the Wa site jurisdiction receive wholesome meals through our school feeding program,” Pele says. “We are able to feed a large number of children in the sponsored schools with healthy breakfast every day because of the kind support of our sponsors.”
Since the program commenced, more than 250 students in two remote schools have been provided with a nutritious breakfast. The school feeding program has greatly improved the general wellbeing and school attendance of the children.
Your support has made it possible for the Wa chefs to buy 400 kg each of maize, rice, and soya; 200 kg each of peanuts and cowpeas; and crates’ worth of eggs and milk.
“The children had access to a nutritious breakfast, became regular attendees at school, and performed better academically due to increased alertness and focus in class,” Pele says. “In addition to addressing absenteeism, the program has also helped to lower the rates of malnutrition and stunting among these children.”
Their parents and the teaching staff are thrilled with the change, with many mentioning changes in the kids’ behavior, attendance, and focus. Thank you so much for your support! Teachers and parents have conveyed their appreciation for the wonderful changes they have seen in the kids.