Headteachers of primary schools have expressed concern over the government's decision to end the feeding programme.
Of greatest concern is that ending the programme will have a huge negative impact on schools in the Arid and Semi-Arid (Asal) areas and the urban poor.
Kenya Primary School Heads Association (KEPSHA) North Eastern Chair Hassan Farah on Friday raised concern that should the proposal be implemented, learners will slowly stop showing up in schools.
He said the proposal is as good as closing schools in the region.
“ The nomadic child is currently being attracted to school by the feeding programme. Food attracts and retains them. Many learners in ASAL areas will not attend school if there is no lunch,” he said.
Farah said the proposal by the government is sending the learners out to feed themselves from elsewhere.
He said children from nomadic communities move from place to place with their family and school helps them settle in one place for a while.
This comes after a revelation that the National Treasury has not allocated any funds for the programme which has been in place since 1980 for the next financial year budget proposal.
The feeding programme was allocated Sh4.9 billion in the last financial year, which turned out to be inadequate.
Basic Education PS Belio Kipsang sought an additional Sh1 billion in the supplementary budget for the programme.
With the allocation scrapped more than 4.5 million learners who depend on meals provided in school are at risk of dropping out.
Appearing before the National Assembly Committee on Education, Basic Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang said that currently, there are over two million students who are out of school, largely because of lack of food.
“We have to appreciate that the school feeding programme is so essential to the success of the students, that it is very important to make sure that every kid gets an education.
“It’s so important that that single meal the students get at lunchtime is retained. It’s so important that that cup of porridge that is given is retained because most students come without having any meal at home,” he told the Committee.
The PS appealed to the National Assembly to see to it that the school feeding programme is reinstated.