The government currently pays 79 pesewas per meal per child under the Ghana School Feeding Programme.

There have been calls for the government to increase the amount to reflect the current increase in the price of foodstuffs.

At the same time, caterers under the programme have constantly called on the government to pay them on time.

Appearing before the Appointments Committee of Parliament on Thursday, 15 December 2022, the Minister-designate of Gender, Child and Social Protection, Lariba Zuweira Abudu, said the government acknowledges the fact that the amount per child is inadequate and is working on increasing it. 

“Honestly, I’ll say no but I think the government is increasing it", she answered to a direct question about whether the amount was enough.

“The price has been there for quite a number of years now and actually needs to be reviewed and also things have changed, so, the government has taken cognisance of that and that’s why it's increasing the amount this year,” the minister-designate stated.

She, however, believes the programme should not be scrapped or focused on only a few schools.

Instead, she is advocating the programme be expanded to enable more children in schools to benefit from it.

“I would encourage that we even increase or add more schools because it’s one flagship programme that helps a lot of parents and children, as well, to stay in school. So, I would liaise with the government and then let them understand that we need to increase the price of the feeding and also even include more schools.”

The minister-designate was optimistic that the gender committee of parliament is considering the appropriate amount to pay for a meal per child and would soon come out with its conclusions.