Ashanti Region caterers of the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) are calling on government to as matter of urgency to pay up their outstanding arrears.
Although the National Coordinator of the Programme, Dr. Mrs. Gertrude Quashigah, has been captured on record to have hinted that the government had given approval for funds to be released for the payment of arrears for 1st term of the 2021 academic year to caterers, some of the caterers in Ashanti Region, speaking on Akoma FM‘s current affairs and political show GhanAkoma revealed that “more than one week since we were assured our funds have been cleared for disbursement into our accounts for first term of the academic year, it is yet to materialize”.
According to the caterers, they have not been paid for the past two terms, a situation they say has really affected their operations as they complain their suppliers and other debtors have been chasing them for non-payment of foodstuff given them.
GSFP is government’s intervention of preparing daily nutritious meals for pupils in various schools across the country.
Since its inception, the Programme has impacted lives of several school children but it is now taking toll on lives of its caterers as a result of delay in payments.
Akoma news investigations revealed the the non-payment of the caterers’ allowances for the past two terms has really affected their livelihoods.
One of the caterers who identified herself as Abena Foriwaa told host of the show Aduanaba Kofi Asante Ennin that “for the past two terms we have not been paid. According to our contracts, we are supposed to be paid at the end of every term but last term we were not paid, yet we went ahead and cooked for the kids throughout this term and it’s left with few days for the term to end and we are yet to be paid”.
The disgruntled caterers have already been complaining that the GH¢0.97 allocated to each child is not enough.
They called for urgent increment in the grant, insisting that amount cannot prepare nutritious meals for the school children.
By Nana Asenso Mensah|Akoma FM|editors.3news.com|Ghana
