PRESS RELEASE
NIGERIA’S FIRST LADY SEEKS ASSISTANCE ON SUSTAINABLE ROLLOUT OF CLIMATE FRIENDLY SCHOOL MEALS
First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria , Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has called on development partners to assist in the country’s bid to rollout climate friendly school meal programs.
She stated this at the Roundtable lunch, organised by Organisation of African First Ladies for Development, OAFLAD in partnership with the Rockefeller Foundation on the sideline of the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
Acknowledging the potential of school feeding programme to drive up enrollment in schools as well as promote nutrition among scholars, the First Lady says the programme is under review in Nigeria.
While President Bola Tinubu has shown commitment by declaring a state of emergency on food security in the country, Senator Oluremi Tinubu noted that the launch of Young Farmers clubNigeria and Every Home A Garden Competition promoted by her are clear indications of the priority attached to provision of affine nutritious meals to children and others in the society.
To ensure sustainable rollout, Nigeria with its surging population and climatic challenges, needs all the help she can get.
“Nigeria is open to assistance in that area. It is something that I believe we really want to do so that we can have school enrolment up and then get most of the children, especially children from the North that are going through desertification and recently, flooding as witnessed in Borno State. It is an hydra headed problem that we are facing. But we are not really scared but we need all the assistance we can get, and you can believe in our administration that we are here to work for our people and put Nigeria back on its feet.”
The goal of the Roundtable lunch which had in attendance other members of OAFLAD, is to among others, position the school meals agenda in the G20 engagement of the African Union.
SIGNED
Busola Kukoyi
SSA Media to the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
