Mali has participated in two conferences organized by GCNF. Most recently, Mali participated in GCNF’s 2009 Forum in South Africa. At this conference, the following challenges were identified:
- the existence of a school food program;
- the inscription of the school food policy in the national programs;
- the appropriation of the school food policy by local communities;
- the participation of all the ministries to the implementation of school food;
- the establishment of a link between school food and local developers in the private sector;
- the evaluation of cost efficacy;
- the country’s capacity to insure efficient movement of funds between the different levels;
- the control and supervision
The challenges identified by the participants are all factors aiming at the implementation of a viable and long-lasting food program. They constitute the road map for the implementation of the Malian program. Corresponding to the previous challenges, the following results were met:
A school food policy (realized with the APM support) was validated by the Government on November 4th. This integrated policy concerns many national programs: agriculture, fishing, breeding, health, industry. Various ministries will contribute to its implementation;
The link between school food, local developers, and the private sector;
- The evaluation of cost efficiency;
- The movement of funds are made between the central, the regional, and the local levels in the context of the implementation of the canteen program;
- The control and supervision;
- The reinforcement of the personal competences participating in the implementation of the school food is effective for certain canteens;
- The management of the retreat help phase (transition phase);
- The models sharing, optimal practices and technical resources between countries
Some long-lasting actions are often started with the provision of canteens of activities producing income to the populations benefiting aiming at financing the work of the canteen. An experimental program of integrated, autonomous canteens will soon be in operation.
The GCNF conferences on school feeding have permitted Mali to project itself into the future by defining (following the conferences’) a planning of actions to undertake in the field. It’s from these plans that Mali was able to develop and validate a national school feeding policy adopted by the Government. The concrete translation of this policy is still following her course because the Ministry and its’ partners are working at this moment on the strategy finalization of a national school feeding programs using sustainable, local products. The main ambition follows the belief that a lack of food should not be a barrier between any Malian child and an education.
Submitted by Aboubacar Guindo, GCNF Delegate
Translated from French
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