The federal government has begun enumeration of the nine million beneficiaries of the National Homegrown School Feeding Programme.

This is as it added that the enumeration of the existing number will be followed by the enrolment of five million more beneficiaries on the school feeding programme.

The enumeration according to the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq is to ascertain the integrity of its data of nine million pupils getting free a meal per day nationwide.

Farouq said the enumeration is in response to the continuous disagreement and questions of some stakeholders about feeding nine million pupils nationwide under the homegrown school feeding programme.

Represented by Director of Finance and Accounts in the Ministry, Dr Matthew Dada, at the flag-off of the enumeration exercise in Oyo state, Farouq added that the exercise will help improve the quality of its data on school feeding.

While asserting that its data indicates that nine million pupils presently benefit from free nutritious meals per day nationwide, Farouq also stated that the exercise is to measure the impact of the National Homegrown School Feeding Programme for better planning and implementation.

According to her, the federal government is targeting an additional enrolment of five million pupils on the National Homegrown School Feeding Programme before year 2023

She stressed that the only time the programme was on a pause was during COVID-19 when schools were shut down. For now, schools are still being fed nationwide.

Stakeholders to include the National Bureau of Statistics, Ministry of Education, National Orientation Agency, National Population Commission, National Youth Service Corps, Universal Basic Education Commission and State Universal Basic Education Boards are being engaged in the present enumeration exercise.

In their remarks, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Mrs Aminat Atere; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Inclusion, Mrs Christianah Abioye said the homegrown school feeding programme had increased school enrolment in Oyo state.

While appreciating the federal government for its commitment to sustaining the programme, the Oyo state representatives demanded that more schools should be captured under the programme in the state so that more pupils can benefit.