School feeding prog boosts student attendance
The school feeding programme has significantly increased student attendance at primary schools in Rangpur, with some schools reporting nearly 100 percent attendance while the dropout rate has also declined.
Under the programme, students at participating government primary schools receive nutritious food items, including milk, bananas, buns and boiled eggs, during school hours. Officials and teachers said the food has encouraged many students to attend school regularly and stay for classes.
The programme is currently being implemented at 223 government primary schools in Rangpur Sadar upazila, covering 33,612 students. Sadar is currently the only upazila among the district’s eight upazilas where the programme is being implemented.
The government is receiving implementation support from the non-government development organisation Eco-Social Development Organization (ESDO).
During a visit to several schools in Rangpur around June, Joint Secretary of the Cabinet Division Murshida Sharmin observed the programme and expressed satisfaction with its impact on student attendance.
Deputy Secretary Sarwar Kamal, Senior Assistant Secretary Imtiaz Morshed, ESDO Sadar upazila coordinator Mohammad Khademul Islam and members of special teams from the World Health Organization in Dhaka and Rangpur were also present during the visits.
At Amashu Government Primary School in Ward No. 4 on the outskirts of Rangpur city, attendance was found to be nearly 100 percent during the visit. Students were seen standing in orderly lines to collect buns and boiled eggs during the designated meal period.
Yamini Kumar Roy, head of programme at ESDO and focal person for the school feeding programme, said the initiative was making a positive contribution to education.
“Students are happy with the programme, and it is having a strong positive impact on education,” he said, adding that ESDO was taking utmost care to maintain the quality and quantity of food supplied.
Project Coordinator Ayub Hossain said food was delivered to schools according to government guidelines. Technical officials regularly inspected the food to ensure quality, and complaints, if any, were addressed immediately.
Sadar Upazila Primary Education Officer Shahnaz Begum said the programme had created a more education-friendly atmosphere at government primary schools.
“Attendance has increased and dropout has declined, creating a joyful and favourable learning environment,” she said. “Students would benefit if the programme were expanded to all upazilas.”
Students said they were happy to receive food at school and now attend regularly, even during rain or bad weather. Some said they no longer leave school or skip classes because they can have food at school.
Parents also said they no longer need to persuade their children to attend school. The children themselves are eager to go to school because of the feeding programme.
Assistant teacher Abdus Sabur, who manages the school’s tiffin programme, said attendance had increased significantly since the programme was introduced.
“We prepare tiffin for around 95 percent of students every day. When attendance reaches 100 percent, there is sometimes a shortage, which we make up later,” he said.
Headteacher Mallika Roy said Amashu Government Primary School has 462 students and that attendance had previously ranged between 70 and 80 percent. It has now increased from around 95 percent to nearly 100 percent since the introduction of the school feeding programme.
She said the programme was launched at the school in December last year and had created renewed enthusiasm among students and teachers.
“No student now remains absent without a valid reason,” she said, describing the programme as an education-friendly and transformative initiative. She added that it was also helping improve students’ nutritional status.
However, she suggested adding biscuits and seasonal fruits to the menu to provide greater variety.
A similar impact was observed at Jafarganj Government Primary School in Sadar upazila. Students said they now attend school regularly and often arrive before classes begin.
Third-grade student Salma Akter said students receive buns, boiled eggs, milk or bananas on different days. Fourth-grade student Helena Akter said she had previously been reluctant to attend school but now enjoyed going because she received food at school.
Parent Mousumi Akter said her child now attends school even during storms and rain and that the child’s concentration on studies had improved.
Headteacher Tahmina Khatun said attendance at the school had risen to more than 90 percent since the programme was introduced. She said the initiative had brought new enthusiasm to the school, increased students’ interest in studies and helped address malnutrition.
District Primary Education Officer Mohammad Nazrul Islam said Sadar was currently the only upazila in Rangpur where the programme was being implemented.
“Since the programme was introduced, enrolment and attendance have increased at schools. It is contributing to improvements in the quality of education,” he said.
He expressed hope that the programme would be expanded to all upazilas of the district, saying this would further increase students’ attendance, interest in attending school and the overall quality of primary education.
