Nairobi County Asked To Account For KSh 140m France Donation To Dishi Na County Programme

• The Nairobi school feeding programme is close to the heart of Governor Johnson Sakaja, who shed tears while commissioning it
• The County Assembly Committee on Health questioned why a KSh 140 million donation by the French Government to the project was directly channelled to the implementor's account
• Nairobi Health CEC Susan Silantoi was not able to tell how much of the donor funds had been used to pay KSh 5 per day for 25,000 learners who could not afford the daily charge

Nairobi County is in trouble over its failure to account for KSh 140 million in donor contributions to the school feeding program dubbed Dishi Na County.

French Government's donation to Nairobi

On Tuesday, April 30, an oversight committee established that the French Government contributed the money to support Governor Johnson Sakaja's programme, which was launched in October 2023.

Nairobi's County Executive Committee (CEC) member in charge of health, Susan Silantoi, told the County Assembly committee that the county had yet to establish regulations for the Dishi na County funds.

Mountain View MCA Maurice Ochieng is the chairperson of the oversight committee.

Silantoi said there was no direct exchange of funds between the county and the donor.

"We submitted the fund regulations to the County Assembly in December 2023 but were told they had to go to the delegated committee first, so they have not been approved yet, " Silantoi added.

Who implements Dishi Na County in Nairobi?

She said the donor funds were paid to the Food4Education Foundation, a non-profit organisation that implements the Dishi na County programme in Nairobi and other counties.

Under the Nairobi Programme, the county contributes KSh 25 for every child, while parents have to contribute KSh 5 for every child. The fund's partners and well-wishers contribute KSh 15.

Dishi na County CEO Wawira Nyambura told the committee that the donor gave KSh 140 million to support 25,000 children from low-income families who could not afford to pay KSh 5 daily.

Nyambura said the organisation receives contributions daily from Kenyans and well-wishers.

She said she could only disclose what the French Government deposited into their account for the Nairobi county programme.

"We received money from the French government for the 25,000 children that we had proposed meals for, which is 1 million Euros; the rest of the money is not for Nairobi. We have many donors everywhere who contribute daily to help implement the programme in other counties," she said.

Nyambura said the contributions are made through a technology called Tao to Eat, which the organisers say makes it easy to validate thousands of children quickly.

Nairobi school feeding programme beneficiaries

According to Ochieng and his Woodley Kenyatta counterpart, Davidson Ngibuini, the Dishi na County programme in Nairobi produces 184,000 meals per day against an enrollment of 310,000 children.

This means nearly half of the school-going children have no meal access. Initially, the county targeted producing 250,000 meals per day.

Silantoi revealed that the county had already spent KSh 623 million on the feeding program.

The committee members insisted that the county produce details of all donor funds and other well-wishers' contributions to the programme, but the CEC said only the implementing partner can.

She said the county used the Public Finance Management Act 2012 to set up the fund but could only have full control once the assembly approves the proposed regulations.

This casts doubt on the funds' accountability, with the committee chairman questioning why the county did not bring the regulations before the health committee, which is mandated to oversee the programme.

How much do Nairobi school-going children pay for food?

The CEC only clarified how the KSh 45 per meal per child is costed.

"The KSh 45 includes the cost of ingredients, transport, logistics, payment of staff, and running of kitchens, so everything is encompassed," Silantoi said.

On the other hand, the Dishi na County CEO added that the meals provided are a balanced diet.

"We provide 50% of calories, 115% of protein, 86% of carbohydrates, 148 % of vitamin B1, 96% of vitamin K, 45% of vitamin B12, 136% of potassium, 179% of magnesium, 61% of phosphorus, 113% of iron, 107% of magnesium and 30% of iodine," Nyambura expounded.

The Food4Education Foundation is a non-profit organisation formed to assist and operate school feeding programmes.

It receives donations, subscriptions, and contributions of any kind to assist medium-poor schoolchildren, particularly feeding.

Some parents have questioned the standards of the food being cooked for their children and resisted the programme.

The People Daily reported that Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna called for a thorough audit of the programme and questioned how the contracted implementor was operating.

The Health Committee has now called for proper and transparent management of the Dishi Programme.

Ochieng, the committee chairman, demanded full disclosure of all the money donated and appropriations the county made.

The committee members raised concerns about the misappropriation of the funds and the possibility of supply chain cartels invading the programme.

In March, Sakaja defended the initiative, saying it had increased Nairobi school enrollment.

Sakaja caught headlines after he shed tears during the commissioning of the Dishi Na County programme.

Proofreading by Nyambura Guthua, journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke