Jelili Gbadamosi
Oba Saka Matemilola, the Olowu of Owu Kingdom, has attributed the failure of the Federal Government’s school feeding programme to poor implementation, warning that rising hunger among schoolchildren threatens Nigeria’s future.
The monarch made the remarks on Monday during a press briefing at his palace in Abeokuta, Ogun State, to commemorate his fourth coronation anniversary, where he also highlighted the achievements of the Olowu Hope Initiative (OHI), the palace’s social intervention programme.
Oba Matemilola said the initiative focuses on education, health and wellbeing, enterprise and skills development, as well as environmental sustainability and climate action, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Responding to questions on the Federal Government’s school feeding programme, the monarch said the policy itself was not the problem but its execution.
“You can have a fantastic policy, but if you have the wrong people there, who are only interested in what they can get out of it, it will collapse. You must target those who really need it, and you must measure impact,” he said.
He noted that the palace’s Meal-a-Day programme had demonstrated that transparency, proper targeting and regular impact assessment were critical to the success of any school feeding initiative.
According to him, the programme was introduced after reports showed that many pupils were staying away from school because their parents could not afford to feed them.
“About 18 months ago, we began to notice, and we also received reports that some of the pupils in this primary school were not attending classes, mainly because their parents could not provide them with any meals,” he said.
Oba Matemilola disclosed that a health screening conducted at ANLG Primary School found that more than 65 per cent of the pupils were either malnourished or severely malnourished.
“This was really heart-wrenching. If you have a child who is seven, eight, 10 or 11 years old and does not have at least the basic meal, a minimum of two proper meals a day, how do you expect such a pupil to learn in school?” he asked.
He added that a recent follow-up assessment recorded improvements in the nutritional status of some pupils, although many remained malnourished because the school meal was often the only food they received daily.
The monarch explained that many parents, faced with economic hardship, were forced to spread limited resources among several children, making the school meal a vital source of nourishment.
Calling on individuals, organisations and communities to replicate similar interventions nationwide, Oba Matemilola said feeding vulnerable children should be regarded as an investment in the country’s future rather than an act of charity.
“We are not just doing charity. We are protecting our future. If we don’t feed them today, poverty can push them into crime tomorrow,” he warned.
