FG to establish structured school feeding programme before end of Tinubu’s tenure — First Lady
By Taiwo Scholarstica
The First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has assured that the Federal Government will put in place a properly structured school feeding programme before the end of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
She disclosed this on Monday while receiving a five-member delegation from the World Bank, led by the Country Director for Nigeria, Dr Matthew Verghis, at the State House in Abuja.
According to a statement issued by her Senior Special Assistant on Media, Busola Kukoyi, the meeting focused on the World Bank’s Early Childhood Development (ECD) programme and its proposed five-year implementation plan for Nigeria.
During the meeting, the First Lady said the President had remained committed to the school feeding initiative since his time as Governor of Lagos State.
“We are looking forward to school feeding. I can assure you that before we finish our tenure, it would have been properly established because even Mr President is very passionate about this, dating back to when he was Governor of Lagos State.”
Mrs Tinubu stressed that early childhood development plays a vital role in improving children’s growth, learning ability and future opportunities. She added that her office would continue to collaborate with the wives of state governors to implement programmes that support the welfare of children across the country.
She also pointed to the administration’s coordinated efforts across the health, education and environment sectors, saying collaboration among ministries was already producing positive results.
“The ministries have also been doing their best for the benefit of our nation, with environment and sanitation, because environmental cleanliness is very key.
“I worked with the Minister of Environment to an extent, and that was why we started the Green Challenge,” she said.
The First Lady commended members of the Federal Executive Council for working together to deliver the administration’s objectives.
“Mr President has gotten himself a wonderful team. They get it,” she said.
She further referenced the government’s tuberculosis awareness campaign as an example of how public health advocacy could be expanded to improve child welfare and development.
Speaking during the meeting, Verghis described Nigeria as one of the World Bank’s most significant partners, noting that the country’s progress was essential to the bank’s global development goals.
“Nigeria is a very important partner for the World Bank, and her success is crucial for the World Bank to achieve its targets.
“We have targets for healthcare delivery, broadband access and energy access. For these various things, if Nigeria does not succeed, the World Bank is not succeeding,” he said.
He explained that the Early Childhood Development programme focuses on nutrition, healthcare and healthy living from pregnancy until children reach the age of five. According to him, investments made during this stage improve cognitive development, reduce future healthcare costs and help break the cycle of poverty.
“Every five or six years, we reframe our programmes in Nigeria. Nigeria is, unsurprisingly, one of the World Bank’s largest partners, and our office here is one of the largest in the world,” Verghis added.
He acknowledged that the benefits of early childhood investments often take years to become evident, making political commitment critical to the programme’s success.
“One downside is that the returns come much later. Sometimes, not everybody is willing to take that long-term perspective. It requires leadership to make that happen. The returns don’t come quickly, and therefore, it requires leadership.”
Verghis also urged the First Lady to leverage her office to strengthen collaboration across government institutions, noting that her advocacy against child malnutrition aligns with the World Bank’s priorities in education, nutrition and sanitation.
The delegation visited the First Lady to brief her on the World Bank’s proposed five-year Early Childhood Development programme for Nigeria, which is currently undergoing technical and analytical planning before full implementation through a coordinated government-wide approach.