Food Bank roll out programme training kicks off in Kavango East region
The Deputy Minister of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare, Rev. Aino Kapewangolo, this week opened the Kavango East Regional Street Committee Training (Food Bank Roll Out Programme). The training in Rundu will conclude on Friday.
At the event, Kapewangolo said household food insecurity is one of the major underlying causes of malnutrition a situation that has led the World Health Organization (WHO) to consider household food nutrition security as a basic human right.
“The establishment of food banks is one way of addressing hunger, specially in the urban and peri-urban areas,” he said.
According to him, the food bank intervention has significant impact on household food security and is effective in addressing hunger especially to beneficiaries with no formal employment given the current socio-economic situation of the country.
“About 90% of the beneficiaries were food insecure before the Food Bank intervention and after the introduction of the Food Bank, 62% of those that were food insecure are now food secure, therefore in terms of financial sustainability the Food Bank programme will be affordable within the current budgetary allocation for the next three years, taking into account a 10% inflationary increase,” he added.
Meanwhile he encouraged the street committee members who will be responsible for the indentification of beneficiaries and the eventual distribution of food items to be trusted people in this regard and to be strong and fulfil the duties trusted to them.
