The KwaZulu-Natal spokesperson for the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) supplier, Thabang Mncwabe, has confirmed that from Monday about 60% of schools will not be supplied with food for the school meal scheme owing to non-payment by the Department of Education.
Mncwabe said several service providers had not received payment for three months, leading to dire financial situations for them. He said the ongoing delay in payments posed a significant challenge, with some providers facing property repossession because of insurmountable debts.
“I can confirm that there are some schools that will be affected (starting from today) because the department has not paid and did not communicate with us or let us know what their challenges were. We only heard on the news that the department was planning to pay service providers in phases,” said Mncwabe.
He said about 60% of the schools in the province would not receive food, emphasising their commitment to providing nutritious food to children despite the financial challenges.
“I can assure you that in Umgungundlovu, many schools will be affected. “We are very saddened by this issue because we came into this business of providing nutritious food in schools because we have a passion for children.
“When one gets into any business, they do so to make maximum income but this nutrition business does not have a lot of money. The suppliers work to be at a break-even point because they want to help children stay at school, as well as those that rely on school nutrition programmes as their only source of meals.
“As suppliers, we strongly believe that we play a critical role. Sometimes we reach into our own pockets for the interest of the children,” said Mncwabe.
Muzi Mahlambi, the spokesperson for the KZN Department of Education, said the payment processes were under way and some service providers would be paid, starting this week.
“It is a matter that is being attended to but we are in talks with the association, so we don’t foresee a situation where there is not going to be provision of nutrition (this week),” said Mahlambi.
However Mncwabe, in a statement, disputed that the department was in talks with them.
“This is not only malicious but very (insulting) to the service providers, who have no money to buy food items for the schools ... and justify the delay of payment by three months by saying this is caused by suppliers not completing their claim documents correctly, which is a blatant lie.
“When claims are received by the district officials on the last Monday of the month, they make sure that they scrutinise the claim document before submitting it for capturing for payments.
“The association has tried all avenues to engage peacefully with the department but it is now clear that the department has no interest at heart for this programme,” said Mncwabe.
ActionSA KZN provincial chairperson Zwakele Mncwango expressed dismay over the department’s failure to pay service providers, leaving many learners without meals.
“Unfortunately, no one knows how long these learners will have to go without food. What is particularly alarming is that this isn’t the first instance. We faced a similar issue in April 2023, which caused a provincial crisis. This again happened in June,” said Mncwango.
He said of particular concern was the R19 million additional commitment made by the MEC for Treasury towards the programme during the budget votes.
ActionSA said it had written to the Education MEC, urging immediate action, and would continue to advocate for the rights of learners to receive the care and support they deserve.
The Mercury