Governments in Sub-Saharan Africa have provided school meals to roughly 20 million extra children over the past two years, the World Food Programme (WFP) reports, marking a significant surge in locally led school feeding programmes and a reduced reliance on foreign aid.
According to the WFP, about 87 million children in the region benefited from school meals in 2024—nearly a one-third increase compared to earlier years. This expansion is being driven by government investment and ownership of school feeding schemes rather than external donors.
In many countries, the programmes that used to be run or heavily supported by WFP and other partners have now been taken over or significantly scaled up by national governments.
Key countries leading the charge include Ethiopia, Rwanda, Madagascar, and Chad. These nations managed to feed many more children over the period—some increasing their coverage by up to six times. In Rwanda, for example, 4.5 million young pupils now receive school meals.
The shift to government leadership is also benefiting local farmers and economies. In Benin, the government’s purchase of food for school feeding programmes contributed over US$23 million to the economy in 2024.
In Sierra Leone, more than a third of school meals came from smallholder farmers. In Burundi, locally sourced school meals have boosted farmers’ incomes by 50% in 2024, while contributing to job creation in cooperatives.
Kenya serves as a telling example of this trend. The Kenyan Government now fully operates its national school meals programme—with WFP playing a technical support role.
Between 2023 and 2024, coverage in Kenya rose from 1.8 million children to about 2.6 million. The government has set a target of providing universal school meals to 10 million children by 2030.
Beyond simply serving meals, many programmes are also embracing broader developmental goals. These include strengthening local food systems, supporting smallholder farmers, and integrating environmentally sustainable practices such as school-based gardens or hydroponics.
In Eastern Africa alone, over 32,000 metric tons of food were sourced from more than 18,000 farmers, injecting nearly US$16 million into local economies. Studies cited by WFP find that every US$1 invested in school meals in some countries generates between US$7 and US$35 in economic returns.
Still, the gains are uneven and challenges remain. In certain countries, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia, and South Sudan, many children are still not reached, due to conflict, funding shortfalls, and infrastructure or logistical constraints.
In Sudan, for example, the civil war has forced about 16 million children out of school, massively disrupting food supply chains; though WFP is providing take-home rations and some locally procured food, many pupils remain without meals.
WFP officials emphasise that the progress reflects increasing political will among governments to treat school feeding not as temporary aid but as a strategic investment in children’s health, education and national development.
The scale of the change suggests a shifting paradigm: rather than relying predominantly on external humanitarian assistance, many governments in Sub-Saharan Africa are stepping up to ensure that millions more children have access to nutritious meals at school—and that the benefits extend beyond the plate, into education, agriculture and economic resilience.
