International Development Grant

Innovations in Sustainable School Feeding

Project Number: CA-3-D000295001

Status: Closed

Country/Region:

Kenya 100.00%

Maximum Contribution: $19,650,000.00

Start Date: March 11, 2014

End Date: March 31, 2016

Duration: 2.1 years

Project Description

This initiative seeks to improve the health and education of schoolchildren by providing school meals and health and sanitation facilities in 1 700 schools in marginalized drought-prone areas of Kenya. The initiative uses innovative market-based approaches that build linkages between schools and local farmers and traders to ensure a steady supply of quality food. School feeding programs improve student performance and provide parents with an incentive to send their children to school. This initiative ensures the continuous delivery of the Kenyan school-feeding program while improving the ability of local authorities to transition to a successful program managed by the Kenyan government.

Expected Results

The expected intermediate outcomes for this project include: (i) improved educational attainment and health status of school children in most disadvantaged rural areas; (ii) appropriate and accountable Government-owned school meal programs for drought-prone areas.

Progress & Results Achieved

Results achieved as of the end of the project (April 2016) include: (1) 785 453 children received school meals in primary schools in the Arid and Semi-Arid lands of Kenya; (2) the implementation of an innovative cash transfer to school approach was completed in Samburu County; (3) the World Food Program (WFP) reached around 36 000 farmers to improve their capacity to access and sell their grains to structured markets; (4) 233 traders supplied food to schools in exchange for cash transfers from WFP; (5) public health officers from Isiolo and Samburu were trained on how to test food quality for the government's Home-grown School Meals Programme; and (6) helped increase the capacity of the Kenyan Government to develop policies strategies and guidelines model new approaches provide training joint monitoring and advocacy for more timely resources.

Key Information

Executing Agency:
WFP - World Food Programme

Reporting Organization:
Global Affairs Canada

Program:
WGM Africa

Last Modified:
September 19, 2025

Development Classifications

DAC Sector:

Education policy and administrative management 10%
Education facilities and training 5%
Primary education 60%
Early childhood education 20%
Information and communication technology (ICT) 5%

Aid Type: Contributions to specific-purpose programmes and funds managed by implementing partners

Collaboration: Bilateral

Finance Type: Aid grant excluding debt reorganisation

Selection Mechanism:
Department-Initiated

Policy Markers
Level 1 Environmental sustainability (cross-cutting)
Level 1 Participatory development and good governance
Level 1 Biodiversity
Level 1 Climate change mitigation
Level 1 Desertification
Level 1 Children's issues
Level 1 Indigenous Issues
Level 1 ICT as a tool for development
Major Funding (>$1M)
Budget Breakdown
2013-04-01 to 2014-03-31 $19,650,000 CAD
Geographic Information
650
Project Number: CA-3-D000295001