MEDIA ADVISORY

10^th African Day of School Feeding (ADSF)

Theme: "Nourishing Justice: School Feeding as a Path to Reparations, Equity, and Empowerment for Africa’s Future”

INVITATION TO THE MEDIA REPRESENTATIVES

What:  The 10^th African Day of School Feeding (ADSF).

When: 28 February - 01 March 2025.

Where: Bangui, Central Africa Republic.

Why: In its 2016 ordinary session, the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, through Assembly Decision AU Assembly (589 XXVI), acknowledged the crucial role of Home-Grown School Feeding (HGSF) in advancing education, nutrition, agriculture, rural development, and gender equality. The Assembly instituted the Africa Day of School Feeding (ADSF) to be observed annually on March 1st, and since its declaration, ADSF has become a platform to showcase the transformative role of school feeding programs in improving educational outcomes, enhancing food security, and promoting local economies.

The African Day of School Feeding (ADSF), highlights the significance of school feeding programs in achieving Africa’s Agenda 2063, specifically Aspiration 1, which envisions “a prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development.” The African Day of School Feeding (ADSF) is also a testament to the continent's commitment to transforming the lives of children through education, nutrition, and community development.

Who: The 10^th African Day of School Feeding is co-hosted by the African Union Commission Department of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation (ESTI); the World Food Programme (WFP); and the Government of Central African Republic.

Objectives:

The overarching objective of the 10^th ADSF is to galvanize support and action for scaling up school feeding programs across Africa. Specific objectives include:

•     To promote policy commitment through advocacy for the integration of school feeding into national development strategies as a key pillar of education and food security.

•     To foster regional collaboration by sharing best practices and innovative approaches to school feeding among AU Member States.

•     To enhance stakeholder partnerships by strengthening collaborations between governments, development partners, civil society, and the private sector.

•     To support resilience building by highlighting the role of school feeding in addressing challenges in fragile and post-conflict settings.

•      To advance sustainability by exploring strategies for financing and implementing home-grown school feeding models that boost local agriculture and economies.

 Expected Outcomes:          

•      Increased awareness through greater understanding of the critical role of school feeding in advancing education, nutrition, and socio-economic development.

•      Policy recommendations by adoption of actionable recommendations to strengthen school feeding programs at the national and regional levels.

•      Enhanced Partnerships through new and strengthened existing partnerships between governments, regional organizations, international agencies, and the private sector.

•      Knowledge sharing through documentation and dissemination of best practices and lessons learned from school feeding programs across Africa.

•      Commitment to action through concrete pledges from AU Member States and partners to expand and sustain school feeding programs.

Participants:

Participants for the two-days event are expected to comprise 200 individuals from the host country; AU Commission; AU Member States representatives; Representatives from the Regional Economic Communities; United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO); Media; Civil society organizations and NGOs; Local and international private sector stakeholders; Financial Institutions; Academia and research institutions; and Farmers’ organizations and cooperatives.

For media inquiries, please contact:

1. Ms. Esther Azaa Tankou | Head, Media and Information Division, Communication Adviser, Permanent Observer Mission to the UN | Information and Communications Directorate | E-mail: yamboue@africa-uinon.org , Tel: +251911361185 / +1 3478127195 (WhatsApp)
2. Ms. Hiba Mohamed |Advocacy Officer| Department of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation| African Union Commission| E-mail: hibae@africa-union.org| Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
3. Mr. Maqhawe Freedom Thwala | Digital Communications Officer | Department of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation| African Union Commission| E-mail: ThwalaM@africa-union.org| Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
4. Mr. Gamal Eldin Ahmed A. Karrar | Senior Communication Officer | Information and Communication Directorate (ICD), African Union Commission | E-mail: GamalK@africa-union.org

Information and Communication Directorate | African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org I Website: http://www.au.int I Addis Ababa | Ethiopia I Follow Us: Facebook | X/Twitter | Instagram | YouTube |