Vice president Nalumango calls for stronger global collaboration to strengthen child nutrition

She said Government recognised the importance of school feeding in improving learners’ concentration, attendance, participation and educational outcomes.

“When a child receives a nutritious meal at school, concentration improves, attendance rises, participation increases and learning outcomes are enhanced,” Nalumango said.

She reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to improving education and nutrition, noting that the Free Education Policy had increased school enrolment, making it necessary to strengthen interventions that support learners’ well-being.

Nalumango highlighted the impact of Zambia’s Home-Grown School Meals Programme, which currently benefits more than 5.6 million learners across all 116 districts.

“The Home-Grown School Meals Programme now reaches over 5.6 million learners in all 116 districts while creating market opportunities for our local farmers and stimulating community economies,” she said.

She emphasised the need for stronger partnerships among governments, cooperating partners, civil society, academia and the private sector to expand and sustain school feeding programmes.

“We cannot achieve ambitious school meal objectives alone. It requires strong partnerships among Government, cooperating partners, civil society, academia and the private sector,” Nalumango said.

She acknowledged challenges facing school meal programmes, including climate-related shocks, inadequate school infrastructure, limited access to clean cooking technologies and persistent malnutrition.

Nalumango said these challenges threatened food supply chains and the delivery of school meals, requiring urgent collective action and climate-resilient solutions.

“Climate shocks, inadequate infrastructure, limited access to clean cooking technologies and malnutrition remain real threats that we must address together through innovation and sustainable financing,” she said.

She called for increased investment in research, innovation and sustainable financing to strengthen food supply chains, promote climate resilience, improve delivery systems and enhance nutritional outcomes.

Nalumango urged delegates to use the forum to share best practices, showcase successful interventions and build partnerships that would accelerate global progress in improving child nutrition.

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