China food aid helps keep children in school in northeastern Uganda

MOROTO, Uganda | Xinhua | On the foothills of Mount Moroto, in Uganda’s northeastern district of Moroto, sweet melodies welcomed guests at Kasemeri Primary School, where an event involving sports and art is underway in appreciation of Chinese food aid.

Food donated by China and others is keeping thousands of children in school here in the semi-arid region known as Karamoja, where harsh weather conditions lead to crop failures.

Judith Nangiro and Paul Choko, both 14, are pupils at Kasemeri. They have a dream of becoming doctors.

“I dream of becoming a doctor because I want to save lives,” Nangiro said, noting that school feeding has helped keep her and her friends in school.

Choko was more specific: “For me, I dream of becoming a surgeon.”

He said there are children who come to school just because of food, and that the number of children in school has risen over time.

Abdirahman Meygag, country director of the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), said such food donations are important to keep the dreams of the pupils alive.

The daily school meals are a powerful incentive for poor families to enroll their children in school, Meygag said.

In April, China, through the WFP, allocated 2 million U.S. dollars for the provision of meals to more than 165,000 children in 315 schools in the region.

Since 2018, China has provided three batches of emergency food aid to support the most vulnerable people in Karamoja through the WFP, benefiting nearly 500,000 people, according to Chinese Ambassador to Uganda Zhang Lizhong.

“These efforts are both immediate support and investment in the future of children by feeding minds and bodies,” Zhang said at the event.

Such donations are part of a commitment China made at the China-Africa Leaders’ Dialogue in Johannesburg in 2023 to help Africa tackle the current food crisis, he said.

They also exemplify South-South cooperation and trilateral cooperation among China, Uganda and international organizations, Zhang said.

Moriku Kaducu, Uganda’s state minister for primary education, praised China for the donations, saying food is critical in ensuring the performance of children at schools.

“Every child has the right to learn, to be healthy, to thrive and realize their full potential,” he said. “Access to diverse, safe and nutritious food is critical to ensure that school feeding generates lasting impact and is a major investment in both human capital and in local economy.”

Schools are a perfect place to help children acquire knowledge, skills and positive behaviors for nutrition, hygiene and health and apply them at home and in communities, Kaducu said.

According to the WFP, the fund donated by China was used to make purchases in Uganda, which motivates local farmers to grow more food and helps improve the livelihood of the local communities.

“We recognize the importance of linking school feeding to local food production,” said Meygag, the WFP country director.

In 2023, the WFP procured 2,300 metric tonnes of food from farmers in Karamoja, injecting 1.9 million dollars into the local economy,” Meygag said.