The Ghana College Feeding Caterers’ Affiliation has appealed to the federal government for an extension of their contracts, following the announcement made on Might 2, 2025, concerning the termination of their contract.
The Affiliation is urging the government to briefly droop the implementation of this termination and permit them to proceed offering meals till the tip of the third time period of the tutorial 12 months.
This request was included in a petition signed by Nationwide President, Nana Amo Sakyi-Otu; Nationwide Public Relations Officer, Adizatu A. Ankrah; Nationwide Secretary, Rachel O. Yeboah, and Financial Secretary, Stephanie Arhin.
The petition has been offered to varied entities, together with the Ministry of Gender, Youngsters and Social Protection, the Nationwide Coordinator of the Ghana College Feeding Programme, the Ministry of Finance, the Comptroller and Accountant-Normal, in addition to the IMF and World Financial institution Ghana Nation Places of work.
In response to the petition sighted by The Ghanaian Occasions, the caterers asserted that they have been prepared, geared up, and adequately ready to proceed their providers, with meals gadgets already bought and essential personnel in place.
“With deep respect and utmost humility, we, the Nationwide Executives of the Ghana College Feeding Caterers’ Affiliation, write on behalf of our over 12,000 devoted caterers and greater than 45,000 cooks beneath our management to passionately attraction in opposition to the latest choice to terminate our contracts with fast impact.
We acknowledge the Authorities’s authority to restructure and reform national programmes. Nevertheless, the personner and timing of this termination will not be solely profoundly unfair but in addition seems to ignore the sacrifices and efforts of hundreds of men and women who’ve diligently served to make sure that Ghanaian college youngsters are fed day by day,” the petition states.
The petition highlights that the sudden termination had positioned them at “important threat of economic destroy and emotional misery,” threatening to destroy livelihoods, destabilise houses, and plunge many into avoidable poverty and debt.
It mentioned the termination jeopardised the well-being of the very youngsters the Ghana College Feeding Programme was designed to help.
“It’s our understanding that new caterers haven’t but been totally procured, skilled, or medically screened, which means youngsters are more likely to return to high school with out meals—an end result that contradicts the essence of the College Feeding Programme.
We, subsequently, humbly plead with Your Excellency to intervene and direct the Ministry of Gender, Youngsters and Social Safety, in addition to the Ghana College Feeding Secretariat, to temporarily droop the implementation of this termination and permit present caterers to proceed serving meals till the tip of the third time period of this educational 12 months,” the petitioners concluded.
The GSFP introduced the fast termination of contracts for all caterers beneath the programme throughout the nation on Might 2, 2025.
In an official assertion, the GSFP instructed that no present caterer ought to present meals for the third time period of the 2024/2025 educational 12 months.
BY BERNARD BENGHAN
