Food Program: Feed The Kids Program
CECILIA FOOD & NUTRITION PROGRAM
Good health in School age Children is not only a critical component of their learning ability but also their developmental progress. The St. Cecilia Food and Nutrition Program, which is sponsored by the Community of St. Therese, Succasunna, NJ USA, has dedicatedly strove to address this need, often a major problem in poor rural areas of developing countries like Kenya.
The program started in 1998 when the Founder of Kenya USA Christian Relief & Development, Inc approached the community of St. Therese in Succasunna and explained how the Children of Kituiuni and others in that region of Makueni Kenya were prone to food deficiency related diseases like malnutrition; kwashiorkor; retardation etc. He requested them through their pastor if they might be willing to help mitigate, if not eliminate, this problem. The faith community was gracious enough to agree and the Program started soon thereafter in 1998, and since then, it has become the mainstay of the lives of the Children of St. Cecilia Kituiuni and other Schools in the Makueni County Kenya. The Program affords a hot meal to each kid, each school day, for a whole year but unfortunately it only caters for the most vulnerable segment of the school population i.e., the Nursery school kids up-to age 6.
The program tries to ensure the food conforms to the WHO Nutritional standards and it has improved the health of the participants tremendously and the results are very evident because the children are not only healthy but also quite active and seldom fall sick from common children’s diseases. Furthermore, the program also encourages high school attendance and enrollment in all the schools involved as reports from the teachers show.
That notwithstanding, we cannot say the Program has been without challenges especially with resources. Seeing how beneficial the program has proven, our aim was to try and include the older kids in the schools, but this has proven difficult due to funding constraints.
Some of the highlights of this Program can be found at https://youtu.be/pmZ26odN3g4
During the height of the program, over 2,000 children from nursery school to age 6, in 17 schools were beneficiaries of the program but in the years following the Corona Pandemic funding plummeted to only a fraction of what it once was, and we were forced to make drastic cuts from serving over 2,000 kids to only about 500.
They say that, half-bread is better than none at all, and we continue to be deeply grateful to our patrons of St. Therese while at the same time urging them, if possible, to augment their support to the extend they can and at the same time we are enlisting the support of other well-wishers, because a child’s life is precious and nutritious food is critical for the proper growth of a child and enhances its learning ability and overall well-being.
This short report is meant to create more awareness in those who would find it in their hearts to share their God given gifts with children like these. We also wish to acknowledge our friends at St. Therese Succasunna who have supported this program over the years and sustained it for over 25 years to the present day. We wish to thank the Pastor of that Community Fr. Ricky Kilcomons; his Assistants and all the staff who coordinate the program and assures continuation of the campaign in support of the Program. It is all a labor of love for everyone, each playing their various roles in a humanitarian enterprise which has proven to be a lifesaver for the children of the communities involved.
For further information on the St. Cecilia Food & Nutrition Kenya contact:
Mr. Simon K. Maweu of KENYA USA CHRISTIAN RELIEF & DEVELOPMEHT, INC,
141 Overlook Avenue, North Haledon, NJ 07508 or see www.kenyausarelief.org or write: smaweu@aol.co
TO VISIT OUR FOOD & NUTRITION PROGRAM SPONSOR CLICK ST.THERESE
The founder of this Organization originally came from this part of the world and so naturally, it was in his home area of Kituiuni Village in the Makueni County, in Kenya, where he started, in 1997, the initial pilot feeding program for nursery school children with only 35 kids. The Program, which was sponsored by his affiliates, the Christian Community of St. Therese, Succassunna, NJ USA, quickly grew so that, at its peak in around 2015, it had grown to 17 schools, with a total population of over 2,000 children participating in the Food & Nutrition Program.
The main objectives of the school feeding program were:
1. To mitigate the effects of drought by providing relief food
2. Ensure improved Health and Nutrition for orphaned and vulnerable children in the Area
3. Offer incentives for children to attend school; increase school enrollment and retention rates
A Survey Of the Program Found That:
i. The project was being implemented in 17 schools, feeding and an estimated 2,340 pupils were participating every year i.e:-15 schools in Kaiti constituency (Kilungu) and 2 in Kilome Constituency. The kids involved were the most vulnerable i.e Pre-primary school up to class 3.
ii. Each participating school received 120 kg of mixed (sorghum and millet) flour per term, at a total cost of KES 40,300, inclusive of project administration costs. When the calculations were done, it meant each pupil got a ration of around 1.4 kg a term, which was hardly enough to register huge nutritional impact although definitely far better than before the program was started. The reason cited was the funding not being adequate visa vis the extend of the need; over the years, it fluctuated a lot and often, the funds were not adequate to provide ample food rations for each participating child. Even many deserving kids did not participate in the program for the same reason. But in better years when the funds received went up, these food rations were a lot more than the study indicated.
iii. Majority of respondents felt the initiative was a good incentive for young children in the target classes to attend school and retain attendance. 87% of Beneficiary parents agreed that the feeding program has helped lessen their food burden. Most respondents felt that, the program should be extended to the other classes in the rest of schools, pointing to the level of poverty and food insecurity in the region. They also reiterated how the rations were meager for the hungry young ones and could be boosted.
iv. A level of cost sharing had been put in place, to the extend possible, since all the parents meet the small wage bill for the cook, and are responsible for firewood, water, and any other food preparation associated costs.
v. Some schools had incorporated orphaned pupils from upper classes into the feeding program to mitigate their plight.
vi. Teachers expressed concern that, transition to upper primary classes which do not participate in the Program was difficult for many pupils as they can no longer participated in the food program because they had advanced to the next class.
vii. Evidently, the feeding program went a long way in militating against the effects of poverty and perennial food shortage in the area.
viii. In some institutions, there were hygiene and food safety concerns given that some of the schools do not have proper kitchens and running freshwater supply; an hygienic concern for which KUSARD is trying to find support from their partners in order to address.
ix. There were also concerns that sometimes there was delay in delivering the food rations, but this was explained away by the Program Manager who said the remittances from overseas did not, sometimes arrive early enough before the schools opened, to procure the food supplies from the Vendors, but efforts were being made to remedy the situation.
THE KUSARD FOUNDATION had diversified from its Food and Nutrition Program Services to encompass other areas of need closely tied to the Food & Nutrition Program and one of these was education. The founder said, “…we saw this as one tool with which to fight poverty. Those children, in our Food program, once they were older, their needs changed and the most prevalent need which we often heard were requests for assistance with Tuition for those poor kids who would, otherwise drop out from continuing with their education unless they were supported financially”.
To this end, KUSARD strove very hard to assist those kids who were assessed to be in dire straits for Tuition Assistance under what was then duped as – “Sisi Ni Jamii” (i.e We are Family) Banner!
It should be noted that, in many African Countries like Kenya, Education is not free and only those who can afford its high cost can pursue their higher educational aspirations.