The government of Niger state will commence free feeding for pupils in public primary schools in Feb. 2017, Mrs Afiniki Dauda, Special Adviser to Gov. Abubarkar Bello on Empowerment and Social Protection, has said.
Dauda made the disclosure while addressing newsmen on Friday in Minna.
She said that application forms had been distributed to interested prospective food vendors across the state.
She added that the food vendors are expected to fill and return the forms in January for selection.
The SA said that feeding is restricted to pupils in public schools alone; adding each food vendor is expected to feed 100 pupils.
“We have done our mapping of the pupils we have in every local government area to encourage enrolment at an early stage,’’ she said.
Dauda said it was not the responsibility of the government to go from house-to-house prevailing on parents to send their children and wards to school.
“It is the responsibility of parents to bring their children to school.’’
She said that parents would be attracted to register their children in school when they notice that their contemporaries in school are fed every day.
She said that hunger deprive some parents from sending their children to school. (NAN)