School Garden Provides Nutrition and Learning in Benin
Early each morning, students at the Kossou primary school in the town of Bembèrèkè, Benin, take turns watering and tending a vegetable garden.
For many years, dry, rock-hard earth made planting impossible. It was when a nutrition advisor for Catholic Relief Services’ McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition program in Benin had an idea that changed things.
Ismael Mama Boni, a student at the Kossou Primary School, waters his school’s above-ground garden, as part of the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition program in Benin.
Photo by Jean-Michel Kpakpo/CRS
Using empty grain sacks leftover from a U.S. Department of Agriculture donation of school lunches, students and staff at Kossou began building a foundation for growing a garden above ground. The first task assigned each group of students was to fill empty sacks with fertile soil to be used as a planting medium.
With support from their teachers, the students watched their garden flourish—and at no extra cost.
"The nutrition advisor organized a meeting to show us that despite our soil conditions, we could create a garden using sacks that could be filled with soil,” says Lafia Monra Yarou Pierre, who teaches at the school. “He came back to give us advice, technical support and strategies for proper maintenance and management of the school garden.”
Lettuce plants grow in recycled food sacks donated by U.S. Department of Agriculture as part of the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition program at a primary school in Kossou, Benin.
Photo by Jean-Michel Kpakpo/CRS
The main objective of this school garden is to improve the quality of school meals. At the same time, it expands the range of spices and ingredients necessary for the optimal nutrition of Kossou’s 970 students. The initiative also raises awareness of good nutrition habits.
“My classmates and I love eating the delicious meals prepared in the school canteen, especially when they contain soy cheese,” says Sakina Zibo, a third grader at the school. “I like to eat rice with green peas and Dambou [a local dish made from maize flour].”
The garden contains lettuce, cucumbers, chilis, spinach, amaranth and other crops. To protect the garden against theft and damage from wandering livestock, a sturdy fence was also built. The harvests not only enrich school meals throughout the year, but extra crops can be sold at a local market. The profit is used to purchase soy cheese as a substitute for meat or fish.
Beyond its impact on nutrition, the garden has transformed education. Students have gained valuable skills in innovative, sustainable agriculture, resource management and community cooperation. Their commitment has become increasingly decisive, with ongoing guidance and valuable advice from teachers. Supported by parent associations, this initiative has strengthened bonds within the school community and may inspire other local schools to grow gardens of their own.
Chretienne Houdanou, a student at the Kossou Primary School, waters her school’s above-ground garden, as part of the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition program in Benin.
Photo by Jean-Michel Kpakpo/CRS
Looking to the future, the school plans to expand the current garden area to increase yields and provide more resources to support the canteen. They also intend to improve the garden's irrigation system.
“We hope that other schools in the area will follow our example,” says Lafia. “We are fully available to assist them. To this end, we plan to share our experiences in teacher forums and during upcoming teacher training sessions.”
The McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition program (MGD21 - also named KEUN FAABA III - in local language) is a five-year (2021-2026), multi-sectoral project funded by the United States Department of Agriculture and implemented by Catholic Relief Services in Benin. In partnership with the American Institutes for Research, Caritas Benin, and the Organization for Sustainable Development, Reinforcement and Self-promotion of community Structures, and alongside a cohort of national ministries, Keun Faaba III aims to provide daily meals to schoolchildren, improve student literacy via strengthened teacher capacity, promote good sanitation practices, and ensure the quality of locally sourced school lunch ingredients. The project works with more than 110,000 children, teachers, and parents in 168 schools across four municipalities. To help increase economic activities and help families afford school enrollment fees, parents are encouraged to take part in Savings and Internal Lending Community groups.
