Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja on Tuesday, June 20, broke into tears after rekindling his childhood memories of how Nairobi children struggle to attend schools.
The Governor was addressing a delegation during the launch of the Dishi Na County programme at Central Kitchen in Roysambu Primary School where he wondered why successive county governments did not intervene to help hungry children.
In the event attended by President William Ruto, Sakaja noted that the school feeding program will offer meals to many children who had been going without food.
"It is sad that children are forced to stay at home because they are too weak to walk to school because they missed a meal at home, especially, in the evening.
"We as county government will ensure that our children will be well fed and are kept in school so that they can study and learn without facing any hunger problems," he assured.
The Governor, who promised to dedicate resources to Dishi Na County Programme, teared up mid-speech for approximately 40 seconds before he was comforted.
He then wiped out his tears noting that he was very emotional about the challenges Nairobi children faced on a daily basis before apologising to the Head of State.
"We have no choice but to help our children achieve their dreams in life. I'm sure that this programme, Dishi Na County, will go a long way in helping them get to where they should be," Sakaja observed.
The governor explained that Dishi Na County programme will provide a daily meal to over 200,000 primary school children in Nairobi.
The program is funded by the county and the national government to prepare meals in school kitchens using locally-sourced ingredients.
"Dishi Na County will improve school attendance and nutrition among children in Nairobi. The programme will also reduce stunting and wasting among children in Nairobi.
"Stunting is a condition in which children are too short for their age while wasting is a condition in which children are too thin for their height. Both conditions are associated with poor nutrition," the county government explained.
Addressing the same gathering, President Ruto thanked Governor Sakaja and revealed that the National Government will provide fifty per cent of the money needed for the programme.
"I feel you my friend Governor Arthur Sakaja, and I assure you that this programme will succeed. We are dedicated to ensuring that our children are treated with dignity.
"I made a commitment in my manifesto that we will deliver the school feeding programme. As Governor Sakaja has done, I implore all governors to have feeding programmes in our schools," Ruto assured.
