School Feeding Programme gets GH¢1.982bn allocation, reaches 4.5m children
The Ghana School Feeding Programme has received a GH¢1.982 billion allocation for 2026, with more than 4.5 million children currently benefiting from the programme every school day.
The Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, disclosed this during the Government Accountability Series.
She said the 2026 allocation represents an increase from the GH¢1.788 billion allocated to the programme in 2025, when about 4.23 million pupils were covered.
In 2024, government allocated GH¢1.393 billion to provide meals for 4,029,580 pupils, with the grant set at GH¢1.50 per meal.
The per-meal grant was increased to GH¢2 in 2025 and has been maintained at that level in 2026, alongside the expansion in coverage.
Dr Lartey said the expansion formed part of government’s broader efforts to strengthen social protection and ensure that schoolchildren have access to nutritious meals while at school.
She also disclosed that government had cleared outstanding arrears owed to caterers from 2024 and had paid for the first and second terms of the 2025/2026 academic year.
According to the Minister, the Ministry has further intensified monitoring of the programme to improve compliance and service delivery.
The number of schools monitored increased from 4,419 in 2025 to 8,270 in 2026.
In addition, 20,171 caterers and head cooks have been trained in practical nutrition standards to improve the quality of meals served to pupils.
Dr Lartey described the School Feeding Programme as one of the country’s most visible social protection interventions, providing support to children and families across Ghana.
She said the government’s continued investment in the programme was aimed at promoting the wellbeing of schoolchildren while strengthening the country’s social protection system.
