By Alieu Ceesay
The Brikama Area Council has committed to making school feeding programmes and human security cornerstone priorities in its 2027 budget, following a transformative training initiative supported by the United Nations.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of a joint World Food Programme (WFP) and International Trade Centre (ITC) capacity-building programme on Friday, Modou Lamin Sanyang, Ward Councillor for Wassadou in the Brikama Area Council, announced that the council will allocate dedicated funding for school meals starting in 2027.
“Come 2027, when drafting the budget, we will factor in the school feeding programme because from this training we have learnt the impact it has made in our schools,” Councillor Sanyang declared. “We will inculcate the school feeding programme into our ward development funds.”
The two-day training, which concluded on 28 November 2025 at Metzy Hotel, equipped ward councillors and Village Development Committees (VDCs) from the Foni region with practical tools under the theme “Empowering Communities for Resilient Food Systems in Foni”. Funded by the UN Joint Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Fund, the programme combined ITC-led sessions on the Human Security Model for Development Planning and Budgeting with WFP expertise on integrating school feeding into local development frameworks.
Tamsir A.B. Cham, representing WFP, urged participants to turn newly acquired knowledge into tangible action. “The knowledge and strategies we shared must be translated into policies, programmes, and priorities that improve human security and the well-being of our children,” he said. “Together we can make school feeding not just a meal, but a pathway to better education, health, and national economic growth.”
Mr Yusupha Keita, ITC Country Representative, emphasised linking local farmers to school feeding initiatives. “We want to see the school feeding programme you have learnt here reflected in your ward development plans,” Keita stated. “Our smallholder farmers producing vegetables must be incorporated into council development plans – that is the essence of human security: freedom from want and freedom to live with dignity.”
Mahamadou Ceesay, President of the Gambia Association of Local Government Authorities (GALGA), reaffirmed his organisation’s full support for councils implementing the new approaches.
Participants from the Brikama Area Council and various Foni wards received certificates of completion, marking their readiness to champion food security and nutrition at the grassroots level.
The initiative is expected to strengthen local governance, boost school attendance and performance, and create sustainable markets for smallholder farmers across the region.
