Enugu upscales child education with N30bn budget for school feeding

The Enugu State Government has demonstrated special interest in child education with resolve to introduce school feeding, starting from 2026. The state has therefore set aside N30 billion for the purpose in its 2026 budget estimates.

The N30 billion is to feed about 260,000 pupils every school day in the 260 Smart Green Schools built by the Governor Peter Mbah Administration across the 260 electoral wards of the state.

Chris-Roberts Ozongwu, the Commissioner for Budget and Planning, disclosed this while presenting a breakdown of the N1.62 trillion 2026 budget estimates proposed by Governor Mbah to the state’s House of Assembly.

The Commissioner explained that the N30 billion school feeding programme would ensure that every child gets one balanced meal each school day as part of the administration’s strategy to actualise zero child malnourishment in the state.

“This initiative is designed not only to promote the wellbeing of our children, but also to strengthen their nutritional health, ensuring that every child receives balanced meals that support growth and learning.

By prioritising nutrition, the programme serves as a critical measure in the fight against childhood malnutrition within our state, laying the foundation for healthier, more resilient future generations,” he stated.

The Commissioner also said that the allocation of 32.27 percent of the N1.62 trillion budget estimates to education was in line with Mbah’s commitment to investing in the sectors that most directly shape human development and long-term economic growth.

According to him, education remained the most reliable pathway for lifting people out of poverty, expanding opportunity, and preparing Enugu for a knowledge-driven future.

“Education sits at the heart of this budget because it remains the most reliable pathway for lifting our people out of poverty and preparing Enugu for a knowledge-driven future. Governor Mbah has made it clear that development must first impact lives before it can reflect on the economy,” Ozongwu said.

Meanwhile, he said that the Government planned to spend N158 billion on the construction of 16 Smart Senior Secondary Schools, modern, technology-enhanced institutions that will redefine how learning takes place in the State.

N68 billion has also been proposed for the building of 10 Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) schools across Enugu. He said that each of the schools would be equipped with workshops, science laboratories, modern classrooms, hostel facilities, and industry-grade tools intended to produce a skilled and job-ready generation of young people.

To sustain the technical education pipeline, the state is also devoting N30 billion to the equipping and furnishing of existing Technical Colleges.

Furthermore, N15 billion was earmarked for upgrading the existing 106 public secondary schools into Model Senior Secondary Schools, two in each of the six education zones in the first phase, to ensure access to quality learning facilities across urban and rural communities.

SENIOR ANALYST - REAL ESTATE

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