Buhari partners with state governors to feed pupils at home

Emmanuel AmudaApril 8, 2020

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The President Muhammadu Buhari led the Federal Government on Tuesday, April 7, said he had concluded plans with state governors to start feeding schoolchildren in their various homes.

According to the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, the federal and state governments had agreed to continue the Home-Grown School Feeding Programme using a door-to-door voucher distribution system.

The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, said the programme would give priority to Lagos, Ogun and the Federal Capital Territory.

In a statement issued by her ministry’s Assistant Director of Information, Rhoda Iliya, the minister stated the programme would extend to all states currently participating in the scheme for a period of 30 days.

She was quoted as saying, “Vouchers will allocate collection time to avoid overcrowding. The vouchers will be redeemed at designated distribution sites.”

Farouq further stated that the Conditional Cash Transfer Programme supervised by her ministry had so far distributed N20,000 each to 110,202 existing beneficiaries on the National Social Register in seven states.

This means the ministry had disbursed a total of over N2.2bn, as Farouq said payments would commence in 17 additional states on Monday.

She said, “It is important to highlight that since the creation of the ministry, we have piloted digital payment in six states and part of the overhaul of the CCT programme is transitioning to digital payments across all participating states.”

The minister said the National Emergency Management Agency was ready to deploy 45,000 metric tonnes of food items to households of satellite towns in front line states including Lagos, FCT and Ogun, with particular emphasis on vulnerable households.

She said the North East Development Commission had provided 11,000 Personal Protective Equipment, 12 ventilators and 6,000 surgical masks to six states in the North-East geopolitical zone.