Kenya becomes co-chair of school meals coalition — Nation Kenya

Kenya has become the fourth co-chair of the global School Meals Coalition, joining Brazil, Finland and France. This was announced in Rome, Italy, during the opening of the coalition’s third ministerial session at the headquarters of the World Food Programme (WFP), Nation Kenya reports.

Kenya’s role in the coalition

Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Education, Julius Ogamba, said that the country is taking on its new role with a sense of responsibility. According to him, the co-chairmanship means that Kenya will represent the African voice in the coalition and gain greater international visibility in the field of school meals. The official believes this could create new opportunities for partnerships and investment.

The School Meals Coalition was launched in 2021 to view school meals as a strategic investment in education and long-term national development. The alliance includes 110 governments worldwide.

Funding for school meals

As a member of the coalition, Kenya has committed to providing universal coverage of schoolchildren through its feeding programme by 2030. According to the country’s Ministry of Education, the programme currently reaches 2.8 million children.

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At the same time, the programme lacks funding. Providing students with meals throughout the school year requires 7.8 billion Kenyan shillings annually. In the 2025–2026 financial year, the programme received 3 billion shillings, leaving a shortfall of 4.8 billion shillings. The same amount of funding has been allocated for the current financial year.

Principal Secretary for Basic Education John Ololtuaa previously told the parliamentary education committee that the allocated funds were insufficient to cover all students and all school days. A 2023 audit found that school attendance rises noticeably on days when children are provided with meals and declines when they are not.

Ogamba also said that Kenya is working with the WFP on a debt-for-food conversion mechanism. Under the plan, funds saved on debt servicing are intended to be directed towards long-term investments in food security and resilience.