The shocking reports of 143 learners from three schools in Komani being admitted to hospitals and clinics late last week highlight the need for safe and nutritious meals to be provided at schools.

We are extremely thankful that no learner lost their lives as a result of this tragic incident but are deeply concerned that this occurred in the first place.

Initial reports seem to indicate that the foodstuffs consumed were procured from nearby hawkers and spaza shops, and we are in full support of Health MEC Nomakhosazana Meth’s call for food safety inspections to be intensified and for action to be taken against shop owners found to be selling expired goods.

The DA is calling for these actions to be extended further, to include schools where school nutrition programmes operate.

Based on a recent response to a parliamentary question to Education MEC, Xolile Nqatha, the last official survey of school facilities where food is prepared was in the 2019/2020 financial year.

MEC Nqatha went on to say that while all schools have facilities where they can prepare meals, not all of them may comply with the Foodstuffs, Cosmetics, and Disinfectants Act, and many may not have a certificate of acceptability.

The MEC said his department is currently rolling out a programme that provides mobile container kitchens to schools, at a cost of R200 000 per container, and that these are provided to a maximum of 20 schools per year.

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When one considers the extent of the need and the sheer number of learners who are reliant on the school nutrition programme for healthy meals, this is simply not good enough. There are currently 1.6 million learners getting fed across the province.

These regulations have been put in place to safeguard our children, by ensuring that foodstuffs are provided that are not contaminated, and thus prevent incidents such as what has occurred in Komani from taking place.

We need to take every possible step to ensure the well-being of our children while they are entrusted to our care at schools. The DA will continue to fight for better conditions at schools, and to ensure that children have access to safe, nutritious meals.