Sakaja rubbishes claims Ksh.144M donor funds for school feeding programme missing

Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja has come out to shed light on the expenditure of Ksh.144 million reportedly donated by the French Government to the ‘Dishi Na County’ school feeding programme.

Speaking before the Senate Committee on Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations in Machakos on Friday, Sakaja rubbished claims the said funds had been lost under his watch.

He revealed that the Ksh.144 million was donated to Food4Education, a non-profit organisation, and not directly to the county government as alleged.

Sakaja further clarified that Food4Education only partners with the county government to support the school feeding programme, adding that the organisation also operates in Murang'a and Mombasa counties.

"Let us not politicise the ‘Dishi Na County’ school feeding programme. This programme continues to improve the nutritional status of the children and also encourages students to attend school leading to an increase in enrolment, performance, and transition to higher levels of education," he said.

Regarding the expenditure of the donated funds, the Governor said the money was used for food subsidies to cushion 25,000 learners who are unable to afford the Ksh.5 required per child.

According to Sakaja, ‘Dishi na County’ feeds 184,000 meals per day against the enrolment of 360,000 children since its launch in 2023.

The Nairobi County boss exuded confidence in the programme saying the current number which is more than half of the targeted children is expected to increase when schools reopen for the second term since eight new schools will be coming on board.

Since its inception in 2023, ‘Dishi na County’ has grown progressively from the first 10 kitchens across the county only offering 80,000 meals to the current 184,000 meals.

In March 2024, the groundbreaking of seven new kitchens was done.

Once the kitchens are completed the programme is expected to feed over 300,000 students in public primary schools and ECDs across Nairobi.