Ngara, TZ – Parents Assistance Award Program (PAAP) assists schools to develop self-sustaining practices – Jan 2025

It’s inspiring to see how the PAAP program is making a tangible impact on sustainability and self-reliance in schools! It is encouraging parents to contribute a portion of their harvest to school breakfast, inspiring the children to learn agricultural skills, and contributing to increasing community collaboration. This is all strengthening community support for the schools, families and children.

Climate change shifted the planting schedules one month later in 2024, and the corn was planted in October instead of September, which is an experience we need to adapt to. Despite this, it is very impressive to see our schools’ 7.5 acres of corn fields are thriving today. The project’s emphasis on student involvement in field preparation, planting, and weeding through the program teaches skills, and the SODAT team mentors the children to build a sense of responsibility and connection to self-reliance.

It’s exciting that the harvests are looking promising, and the target yields for each school and family are well-defined like 1,400 kg for Mukirehe, 2,500 kg for Kabalenzi, and 2,400 kg for Mukibogoye primary school based on availability and quality of school land that is being cultivated to supply breakfast and build emergency stock for poor harvest years.

Parents’ corn contribution target for yearly feeding stock at Mukirehe is 10 Kg/student to achieve 5,000 Kgs total target, at Kabalenzi is 7 Kg/student to achieve 7,000 Kgs total target, and at Mukibogoye is 10 Kg/student to achieve 7,500 kg total target. This can really strengthen the self-reliance of the schools and contribute to a more sustainable breakfast serving every school day. Focus on the school breakfast program is aimed at facilitating an Expected, Easy, and Enjoyable learning environment that will assist the schools’ efforts to improve their children’s health, attendance, attentiveness, and academic performance growth. The dream is a bright future for all the teachers, families and children.