Bungoma Governor Kenneth Lusaka today launched a free Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) feeding program, a significant initiative set to benefit 90,750 learners across 820 ECDE centers. The program will provide each child with 40 grams of fortified porridge, three days a week, aiming to boost nutrition, attendance, and academic performance among young learners.
Speaking at the launch at Masinde Muliro Stadium in Kanduyi, Governor Lusaka highlighted the program’s broader impact. “A hungry child cannot concentrate, cannot play, cannot learn. But a nourished child? That child can dream, thrive, and grow into a leader of tomorrow,” he stated, underscoring the county’s commitment to ensuring no child is left behind due to hunger.
The feeding program is part of a wider investment in early childhood development. In the current financial year, the county government has allocated KSh 30 million for the feeding program, KSh 23 million for ECDE teaching and learning materials, and KSh 25 million for vocational training equipment.
The fortified porridge, certified by county nutritionists, will address nutritional gaps for 41,794 PP1 learners and 48,956 PP2 learners. A total of 141,570 kg of fortified porridge has been procured for the entire school term.
Beyond nutrition, the county is also advancing educational resources. They are collaborating with EIDU to integrate digital learning into 135 ECDE centers, with plans to expand to an additional 450 centers in the Financial Year 2025/2026.
In addition, Governor Lusaka oversaw the second round of ECDE book distribution, providing new learning tools to 41,974 PP1 learners and 4,715 trainees from 89 Vocational Training Centers across the county.
Reaffirming the county’s constitutional responsibility for ECDE, Lusaka reiterated his administration’s commitment to child development. This includes the construction of modern classrooms, the hiring of trained ECDE teachers, and the provision of CBC-aligned learning materials, all geared towards nurturing the next generation of leaders in Bungoma.
