By Akani Nkuna
The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has approved a $50 million fund aimed at eliminating hunger and malnutrition among school-aged children across Africa.
This initiative, which is endorsed by the bank’s board of directors, seeks to provide sustainable solutions to food insecurity, ensuring that millions of children receive proper nutrition to support their education and overall wellbeing.
The fund marks a major step toward tackling child hunger on the continent.
The End School-Age Hunger Fund aims to bolster school meal programmes in targeted African countries by expanding existing initiatives and creating new ones so that more children in Africa have access to nutritious food while attending school.
At the same time it will boost rural economies through agricultural productivity, AfDB spokesperson Alexis Adele said in a statement.
The fund will be implemented in partnership with the African Development Fund, which is the concessional arm of the AfDB.
In addition, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) has pledged its support by signing a $50 million commitment letter to help establish and launch the initiative aimed at tackling child hunger in Africa.
Adele said the fund will finance initiatives that directly supported school feeding programmes across the continent, with the aim to provide nutritious meals to children while fostering the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises involved in delivering services for these programmes.
“Where appropriate, it is expected to provide essential technical assistance to governments, encouraging them to prioritise nutritious school feeding programmes as a vital mechanism for enhancing socio-economic development, ensuring student retention in schools and improving learning outcomes and social protection,” he said.
In September 2024, the CIFF and the AfDB signed a letter of intent, with the foundation pledging up to $50 million to establish the fund. Witnessed by King Lestie III of Lesotho, CIFF also expressed its readiness to contribute an additional $50 million once the bank launched its initial investment.
The AfDB is also engaging other philanthropic organisations, including the Aliko Dangote Foundation, to expand donor support.
Adele emphasised that the partnership was both strategic and essential for securing donor support.
AfDB vice president for agriculture, human and social development, Beth Dunford, said they would work to secure a five-year commitment from the target countries, which was the standard implementation period for the bank’s investment projects.
“The implementation period is long enough to establish a solid proof of concept to ensure the continuation of the initiative beyond the initial funding phase,” she said.
INSIDE EDUCATION
