The caterers under the School Feeding Programme have rejected the proposed GH¢1.20 increment put forth by the Minister of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, Lariba Zuweira Abudu.
According to the caterers, the increase is insufficient and unacceptable.
Since the reopening of schools, the caterers have withdrawn their services and are demanding that the government raise the daily amount per child and settle outstanding arrears.
The aggrieved caterers are requesting payment of GH¢3.50 per child before they end their strike.
Dorothy Ofori Sarpong, the spokesperson for the caterers in the Ashanti Region, expressed dissatisfaction with the Minister’s response to their concerns.
“We are not going to cook, we are still on strike, though the Minister has spoken. What she came to say wasn’t to our satisfaction. The arrears that she claimed has been cleared with the exception of the 2022 third term are not so. There are arrears as far back as 2019, 2020, and 2021…so if she is saying all arrears have been paid, it is not so.
“With the amount of GH¢1.20 proposal, we are not going to agree. We cannot use this to cook any better food for the children, and so we pray that she goes back and come and tell us something better.”
The leadership of the caterers under the government’s school feeding programme in the Ashanti Region have also expressed dissatisfaction with the Gender Minister’s approach to addressing their concerns.
The caterers want the gender Minister to visit various districts to appreciate the challenges of their members.
Speaking at the Meet the Press series on Sunday, the Minister for Gender, Children, and Social Protection, Lariba Zuweira Abudu assured the striking caterers that plans are in place to pay outstanding arrears for the third term of the 2022 academic year.
