Attachments
In Numbers
151,378 people assisted in August and September 2024
US$ 1,303,585 cash-based transfers made from March to July 2024
US$ 4.9 million six-month (October 2024-March 2025) net funding requirements
Operational Updates
• With the start of the new school year in September 2024, WFP continued its support to 422 schools across the country’s Upper River, Central River North and South, and North Bank Regions to provide children with a nutritious meal a day through its Home-Grown School Feeding (HGSF) programme.
• The total number of children enrolled increased from 144,961 in the previous academic year to a total of 151,378, including 70,159 boys and 81,219 girls, thus expanding the programme’s reach. This underlines the important role HGSF plays in improving access to primary education and encouraging school attendance.
• To evaluate the capacity, quality, and reliability of suppliers involved in the HGSF programme, a School Feeding Suppliers Assessment was conducted in September. It aimed at ensuring that producers consistently meet the nutritional and operational requirements of the programme, thereby supporting the health and academic performance of the students.
• WFP is making progress in supporting the conduct of the national Systems Approach for Better Education Results (SABER) Exercise to analyse the HGSF programme, identify strengths and gaps, foster dialogue, and improve planning. Discussions with the World Bank to collaborate during the exercise and cover all modules in the areas of health and nutrition; water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH); and school feeding, are currently ongoing.
• WFP participated in the Global Shield in-country workshop in September, as part of efforts to establish pre-arranged and trigger-based finance for climate change adaptation in The Gambia. WFP presented its current disaster-related initiatives and engaged in discussions with partners.
• In September, the Country Office welcomed Ms. Evelyn Etti, Deputy Regional Director at the WFP Regional Bureau for West and Central Africa, who came to The Gambia to get an overview of WFP’s work in the country, ascertain challenges and needs, as well as strengthen collaboration between the two offices. She visited two project sites supported by WFP and its partners, including the Brufut fish landing site and the Bakau women horticulture garden. Both projects are aimed at women’s empowerment through improved working conditions for enhanced productivity and livelihoods.