Government Pays School Feeding Caterers 2024 First Term Arrears
The Government of Ghana, through the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, has fulfilled its commitment by paying the first term arrears to caterers under the School Feeding Programme in all 16 regions. This move is expected to ease the financial burden on caterers and ensure the continued provision of meals to schoolchildren.
For the first term of the 2023/2024 academic year, which commenced on October 3, 2023, the total number of official cooking days was set at 58. However, an official directive required caterers to utilize the period from October 3 to October 6, 2023, to clean and prepare their kitchen environments. Consequently, the actual cooking days started on October 9, 2023, reducing the total to 54 days.
Caterers have been compensated for these 54 cooking days at a rate of GHC 1.20 per child for each school day. Payments were calculated based on the actual number of days caterers provided meals to the pupils during the term.
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Despite the payments, the National Secretariat of the Ghana School Feeding Programme has been alerted to complaints from caterers across the 16 regions regarding alleged underpayments. In response, the Secretariat has instructed caterers experiencing genuine issues of underpayment or no payment to report to their Regional Coordinators for prompt resolution.
The National Secretariat will thoroughly investigate these concerns to determine whether the affected caterers cooked throughout the term or if the deductions were due to non-cooking days. In the meantime, the Secretariat urges all caterers to remain calm while efforts are made to address the issues.
The Secretariat extends its gratitude to the caterers for their patience and cooperation during the delay in payments. Their dedication and selfless service to the beneficiary children are greatly appreciated, and their hard work ensures the success of the School Feeding Programme.
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