The Tribune

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS

Tribune Staff Reporter

lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

EDUCATION Minister Glenys Hanna-Martin announced the launch of a $1m national breakfast programme in eight New Providence and Family Island primary schools.

The national breakfast programme will start in October and will cater to 2,500 primary school children.

The primary schools in New Providence include Columbus Primary, Ridgeland Primary, Sandilands Primary and Albury Sayles Primary. Family Island schools include Rolleville Primary in Exuma, Holmes Rock Primary in Grand Bahama, Cherokee Sound Primary in Abaco and Old Bight Primary in Abaco.

Ms Hanna-Martin said the selected schools had populations below 600 students and an attendance rate below 89.3 per cent.

“Now research has shown globally that breakfast programmes provide support for struggling families, fuel students’ health and learning, provide nutritional support for children, lead to better attendance rates and fewer missed days, and higher student performance,” she said.

“This pilot programme will allow us in those select schools to be able to monitor and collect data and to test the outcomes, because these are the outcomes that we would anticipate and expect.

“The purpose will be to provide free breakfasts to all students, not a select few. The traditional lunch programme caters to students in need, but the breakfast programme will cater to all students attending a school.

Ms Hanna-Martin said the programme will be closely monitored to test its effectiveness.

Students will be provided with a balanced breakfast on Monday, Thursday and Friday. Those days were chosen because many families suffer a food deficit on the weekend, Ms Hanna-Martin said.

“The government is doing this because there is a commitment to doing whatever is necessary to ensuring first of all that children are in school. That’s a priority - get children in school,” she added.

“Secondly, to ensure that they receive quality instruction while they’re in school, for their human development and for securing the overall well-being and the future of our nation. And thirdly and importantly, is to ensure that children have access to food as they attend school.”