Home-Grown School Feeding Programs have emerged as powerful tools not only to combat undernutrition and enhance child well-being, but also to drive broader socio-economic development. These programs extend beyond simply improving school meals; they are strategically designed to strengthen local food value chains, support local farmers, and stimulate local economies, thereby creating a more resilient and self-reliant agricultural sector. In Ethiopia, school feeding programs were formally initiated in 1994 as an emergency intervention aimed at improving educational outcomes in regions experiencing chronic food insecurity (WFP, 2017).
Ethiopia currently implements several types of Home-Grown School Feeding Program (HGSFP). The HGSFP operates through several delivery models. Despite their growing importance, there is limited systematic evidence characterizing the landscape of the HGSFP in Ethiopia as well as the different models of procurement and delivery of school-feeding services. The school feeding program targets all school children from pre-primary to primary levels, aiming for 100% coverage by 2030 (Ministry of Education, 2021).
The overarching objective of this project is, therefore, to provide evidence to support decisions for improving cost-effectiveness, sustainability, and inclusiveness in HGSFP food procurement systems and related value chains in Ethiopia. Before implementing the proposed interventions, the research team conducted a diagnostic analysis to ensure that the interventions are evidence-based and responsive to existing challenges. During the workshop, key findings from the diagnostic study will be presented, followed by a panel discussion, including practitioners and policymakers actively involved in Ethiopia’s Home-Grown School Feeding Program.
Event Agenda
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