School Feeding Caterers in Ashanti Region Beg Mahama to Reverse Contract Termination

• Caterers under the Ghana School Feeding Programme in the Ashanti Region are appealing their contract terminations
• The feeding programme announced that no meals would be provided in the third term of the 2024/25 academic year
• Affected caterers said they took loans to stock food and have appealed to President Mahama to reverse the decision

Some caterers under the government’s school feeding programme in the Ashanti Region have appealed to President John Mahama to reconsider the termination of their contracts.

The Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) announced the immediate termination of contracts for all caterers engaged across the country.

In a statement dated May 2, 2025, the GSFP directed that no caterer should provide meals for the children for the third term of the 2024/2025 academic year.

However, the feeding programme assured the caterers that all outstanding payments for the previous terms would be settled in due course.

Reacting to this, Gifty Asamoah, the president of the School Feeding Association in the Ashanti Region, expressed disappointment in the government for abruptly cancelling their contracts.

She said President Mahama promised to increase the feeding grants and support the caterers while campaigning for the 2024 presidential election.

While the promise to increase the grants had been fulfilled, the termination of their contracts was distressing.

According to Gifty, many of the caterers had taken loans to stock their kitchens with foodstuffs in preparation for the upcoming school term.

She said if the government had informed them earlier of its intention to terminate their contracts, they would not have taken out these loans.

Consequently, some of the caterers, who travelled from Kumasi to the premises of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, pleaded with the Minister, Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, to intervene with President Mahama on their behalf.

“We plead with the government to reverse its decision to cancel our contracts because we are all citizens of this country. Some of us are single mothers, and we have also taken loans. We also have widows, children and the aged that we take care of, and so the termination of our contracts is unfair,” she said.

The video of the caterers appealing their contract terminations is below:

Reactions to the caterers' appeal to Mahama

YEN.com.gh compiled a few reactions to the caterers' appeal to President Mahama.

@General_K88 said:

"Who caused am? See food dem dey do."

@illegalLuminary also said:

"What were they doing before their contract? Can’t they understand that every contract ends upon termination by one party?"

@eagleyez7 commented:

"They're not the only Ghanaians who can cook. The gov't should open up for bids."

@iamedemgabby2 also commented:

"It's sad, but nothing can be done about it. They should find a way to redeem the loans."

School feeding programme goes digital

Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that the Ghana School Feeding Programme was set to transition from manual to digital operations.

The Gender Ministry said the system would be piloted in the New Juaben South and Krachi East districts before a national rollout.

Darkoa Newman, the Gender Minister, said the initiative was being piloted in an effort to make the programme more efficient.

Source: YEN.com.gh