How school feeding, health, nutrition education can tackle child malnutrition – Minister

Spread the word The Minister of Education, Dr. Morufu Olatunji Alausa, has called for a stronger role for the education sector in tackling child malnutrition, identifying school feeding, school health, nutrition education and improved access to quality education as critical components of the Federal Government’s Nutrition 774 Initiative.

Alausa made the call on Wednesday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, while speaking at the Ethiopia–Nigeria Leadership Exchange on Moving the Needle on Nutrition.

The Minister, who participated in a session on “Building the Multi-Sectoral Framework,” said the fight against malnutrition required coordinated action across education, health, agriculture, planning and other relevant sectors.

He stressed that effective implementation would also require clearly defined responsibilities, adequate financing, reliable data and strong monitoring mechanisms across the three tiers of government.

According to him, the Nutrition 774 Initiative provides an opportunity to translate Nigeria’s national nutrition priorities into practical interventions across the country’s 774 local government areas, particularly for children, families and communities most in need.

Alausa said education must occupy a central position in the national response because nutrition, health, learning and children’s overall development were closely interconnected.

He identified school feeding as one of the most practical ways the education sector could contribute to improving children’s nutrition while also encouraging school attendance and retention.

The Minister explained that linking school feeding with school participation could help address some of the socioeconomic barriers preventing children from enrolling in school, attending regularly and remaining in education.

He also highlighted nutrition education as another important intervention, noting that the integration of nutrition-related studies into Nigeria’s revised school curriculum would equip children with knowledge about healthy eating, wellbeing and healthy lifestyles.

Alausa said the Federal Ministry of Education’s proposed contribution to Nutrition 774 would include school feeding, school health, nutrition education and measures aimed at strengthening access to quality education and school participation.

He explained that the interventions were expected to form part of local government multisectoral plans of action for food and nutrition, with relevant education indicators proposed for inclusion in the initiative’s local government scorecard.

The Minister stressed the importance of ensuring that Nigerian children have access to adequate nutrition and educational opportunities necessary for healthy growth and development.

He said keeping children in school, improving the quality of learning and creating supportive school environments could contribute to improved health, nutrition and developmental outcomes.

Alausa disclosed that the Ministry’s proposed interventions were aligned with the National Policy on Food and Nutrition, which seeks to increase school-feeding coverage from 33 per cent to 60 per cent of primary-school children by 2035.

He further called for greater attention to early childhood care and development beyond the first 1,000 days of a child’s life.

According to him, nutritional, health and developmental needs remain critical beyond the first 1,000 days, making it necessary for government to sustain appropriate interventions throughout the wider period of early childhood development.

The Minister also identified reliable and integrated data as essential to effective nutrition planning and implementation.

He said improved integration of relevant government data would enable authorities to identify children and communities requiring assistance, improve the targeting of interventions and determine whether programmes were reaching their intended beneficiaries.

Alausa stressed that national policies must be backed by effective implementation at state and local government levels, supported by clear targets and appropriate monitoring arrangements.

He said the proposed inclusion of education indicators in the Nutrition 774 local government scorecard would strengthen accountability and enable government to track the contribution of the education sector to improved nutrition outcomes.

The Minister also welcomed the opportunity provided by the Ethiopia–Nigeria leadership exchange to learn from Ethiopia’s experience in coordinating nutrition interventions and mobilising domestic resources.

He, however, stressed that lessons from Ethiopia would have to be carefully adapted to Nigeria’s peculiar circumstances and institutional realities.

Alausa maintained that sustained progress in reducing malnutrition would depend on effective collaboration among government institutions, appropriate financing and stronger implementation arrangements.

He reaffirmed the Federal Ministry of Education’s commitment to working with relevant ministries, state governments, local government authorities and development partners to advance education-related interventions under the Nutrition 774 Initiative.

The Minister said the initiative was consistent with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly its emphasis on human capital development and expanding opportunities for children and young Nigerians.

He added that improving children’s nutrition alongside access to quality education was essential to building a healthier, better-educated and more productive population.

Alausa stressed that stronger school-based nutrition interventions, effective school feeding, nutrition education, improved school health services and closer collaboration among sectors would contribute significantly to children’s wellbeing and development.

He reiterated the Ministry’s commitment to ensuring that education remains an integral part of Nigeria’s response to malnutrition and to supporting initiatives that would enable every Nigerian child to learn, grow, remain healthy and fulfil his or her potential.