Africa-Press – Lesotho. The World Food Programme (WFP) received to the tune of M25 million from the Government of Japan as a contribution towards strengthening food support to 50,000 pre-primary school children through the Lesotho government national school feeding programme.
This donation will be used to procure canned fish to further diversify nutritious meals offered in Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) centres, reaching 26,000 girls and 24,000 boys across the country.
The Minister of Education and Training Hon. ‘Mamookho Phiri appreciated the Government of Japan for the direct investment in the future of the country through the national school feeding programme.
“This invaluable donation will complement the maize meal and highly fortified nutritious porridge that the children are currently enjoying and make a tangible difference to the lives of Basotho children across the nation.
This contribution also supports the national school feeding programme, which aims to ensure that vulnerable pre-primary school children in Lesotho have access to adequate, safe and nutritious food all year round,” Phiri explained.
Phiri pointed that the Government of Japan has been contributing towards humanitarian food assistance in developing countries since 1968 and is a long-standing partner of WFP in Lesotho.
She informed that the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated food insecurity in the country as sources of livelihoods such as casual labour, remittances, crop sales, petty trade, livestock sales or sale of livestock products remain slightly lower than normal.
She said it is estimated that some 312,000 Basotho will face acute food insecurity and require urgent humanitarian assistance, between October 2020 and March 2021.
Speaking at the ceremony, WFP Lesotho Representative and Country Director Aurore Rusiga indicated that the support from Japan has come at a critical time when WFP is appealing for more resources to respond to increasing humanitarian needs.
“The timely contribution will reach the most vulnerable Basotho children in the form of a hot and nutritious meal, allowing them to remain in school and as such to reach their full potential,” she stated.
According to Rusiga, results from the latest Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) Food Insecurity Analysis of August 2021 predict that currently, that is, September 2021, about 179,000 people are facing high acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3) and require humanitarian action to reduce food gaps, protect and restore livelihoods and prevent acute malnutrition.
“The donation will help meet the heightened need for food assistance during this unprecedented time.
Together we can work towards reducing the country’s development challenges, and strengthening our bilateral relations through humanitarian assistance,” commended the Ambassador of the Embassy of Japan His Excellency Ambassador Norio Maruyama. He pointed that Japan has been one of the most consistent donors to WFP Lesotho having donated over M148.4 million since 2014.
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