The NHGSFP Programme Model
The NHGSFP was created to address hunger and malnutrition among Nigerian children, enhance school enrolment, and increase agricultural production and economic growth.
Public Primary School Pupils (Classes 1–3)
Children receive one free, hot, nutritious meal per school day. This eliminates classroom hunger, boosts brain development and focus, reduces stunting and micronutrient deficits, and leads to massive increases in public primary school enrolment and attendance.
Rural Smallholder Farmers
All food items — eggs, chicken, fish, beans, yams, maize, vegetables, and palm oil — are procured directly from smallholder farmers within the immediate state and local communities, creating guaranteed, predictable markets and curbing post-harvest losses.
Community Women & Cooks
Tens of thousands of women from the local host communities are recruited, screened for medical health fitness, trained in modern food handling and sanitation, and remunerated directly by the Federal Government to cook meals for their neighborhood schools.
Multi-Tier Implementation Architecture
Federal Government Role
Provides total funding, designs standard operational guidelines, enforces biometric compliance, monitors daily meal delivery, and conducts scientific impact assessments.
State Government Implementation
Implements the state feeding blueprint, selects public primary schools and pupils, appoints State Programme Officers, and maps culturally appropriate seasonal meal menus.
Community Cooks Engagement
Women in local communities are screened for medical fitness, trained in sanitary food preparation, and paid directly by the Federal Government to cook on-site.
Aggregators & Farmer Cooperatives
Local farmer groups mop up agricultural produce (fresh eggs, yams, grains, vegetables) directly from smallholders and distribute to cooks, eliminating middlemen inflation.