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The Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education, Conrad O. Sackey, has assured the public that rice donations received from the governments of China and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) will be distributed transparently to support Sierra Leone’s national school feeding programme.
Speaking at a press conference in Freetown, the minister said the government is committed to ensuring that citizens are fully informed about how donated food items are allocated to organisations implementing the programme.
“This country is still receiving support from friendly nations,” Sackey said. “A few months ago, we received donations from the Chinese government to support school feeding. We believe the public has the right to know how these resources are being distributed.”
Sackey said the school feeding initiative forms a key part of President Julius Maada Bio’s human capital development agenda under the Free Quality School Education programme. According to him, several international partners have shown interest in supporting the initiative.
He explained that the rice donated by the Chinese government will be shared among three organisations implementing the school feeding programme: the World Food Programme (WFP), Plan International and Women’s United for Progress (WUP).
According to the minister, the distribution ratio was agreed at 40-40-20, with Plan International and Women’s United for Progress each receiving 40 percent of the consignment, while the World Food Programme will receive 20 percent.
He further explained that WFP currently operates in five districts across the country, four of which are funded by external donors while one district is fully supported by the Government of Sierra Leone.
Sackey said full details of the allocation, including the exact number of bags assigned to each partner, will be documented in a Memorandum of Understanding to be signed by the participating organisations.
In addition to the Chinese donation, the ministry also received 350 metric tons of rice from ECOWAS, equivalent to 7,000 bags. Out of this quantity, the minister said 100 bags were reserved for boarding schools across the country, leaving 6,900 bags available for implementing partners.
Sackey said only Plan International and Women’s United for Progress accepted the ECOWAS rice donation. Following consultations with the ministry’s internal auditor and members of a distribution committee, it was agreed that the remaining rice would be shared equally between the two organisations.
“As a result, each organisation received 3,450 bags to support school feeding operations in their respective districts,” the minister stated.
He emphasized that officials from the Anti-Corruption Commission of Sierra Leone were involved throughout the process to ensure transparency and accountability.
“They have been part of the process from the beginning. We invited them to our initial meetings and they are here again to follow up on what we are doing,” Sackey said.
The Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education reaffirmed its commitment to prudent management of donor support as the government continues efforts to strengthen the school feeding programme across the country.
