Probe launched into "hot meals" labour

A visibly upset Minister of Education Priya Manickchand on Wednesday afternoon announced that she has ordered a full probe into reports that children of the Kato community in Region 8 would have to carry firewood and logs to prepare hot meals as part of the school’s feeding programme.

“I am saying definitively that our rules specifically say that it is the adults who must provide the firewood. I am saying to you that we provide the money to purchase this firewood”, Manickchand told the media.

Kaieteur News in its Wednesday edition featured a number of photographs of young children in the hinterland community carrying logs on their shoulder to assist in the preparation of food. The report quoted a Regional official as saying that the practice takes place at least three times per week.

Communities like Kato in Region 8 are underdeveloped and villagers would depend on fire wood as part of their cooking routine. Getting around the community the community would usually be by foot or using All Terrain Vehicles because of its many hills and mountains.

Minister Manickchand called a press conference at her Brickdam office to express shock over the report although she indicated that from preliminary investigations carried out by the Ministry today, the incident may have been an isolated one. According to Manickchand when checks were made with the Headteacher of the school today, she indicated that from her records, the incident as featured in the newspapers may have occurred just once while she was on leave.

The Minister said she got the assurance from the Headteacher that it was not a regular practice. Still, the Ministry will now dispatch an investigative team to the community to get a better understanding of what is taking place with the programme. The Education Ministry, according to the Minister, would carry out monthly monitoring checks at all of the schools that are apart of the feeding programme. The Kato school was last visited in April and the practice was not observed.

“The Ministry of Education does not recommend and or support that children be utilised in the provision of meals for the school feeding programme. We absolutely condemn the use of children to fetch firewood to use as energy to cook”, Manickchand said.

The Kato Primary School is one of 92 schools that benefit from the national school feeding programme. The programme was initially supported by an international agency but that agency wrapped up its work at the end of 2012. The Government of Guyana decided to continue the programme and over $1 Billion was budgeted this year for the initiative.

The Education Ministry has explained that the programme although funded through the Education Ministry would also be community based and supported. In Region 8, parents had signed on to assisting the school with the meal preparations. Minister Manickchand said Regional officials ought to be monitoring the programme on their own and providing issues of concern to her Ministry. She said for the Kato School, hot meals are provided daily for students.

The Minister reiterated several times during the press conference that her ministry and the programme would never encourage children being used for labour and that must be made clear.

The programme has been ongoing nationwide for over five years and the Education Ministry believes it has been able to not only cater healthier meals for students but may also be responsible for students improving their attendance records in many of the communities that benefit from the initiative. (Photo from Kaieteur News)

FILED: 5th June, 2013