Education ministry backs school’s hostel food ban as parents raise hunger concerns

The Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sport, Arts and Culture says while there is no policy prohibiting pupils from bringing food to school hostels, the Basic Education Act allows individual schools to set their own rules. This follows a decision by Leevi Hakusembe Secondary School in the Kavango West region to ban pupils from bringing food to the hostel, citing low turnout at the dining hall. School principal Amandus Hamutenya last month said large amounts of prepared food are being wasted as pupils opt to eat their own food instead of school meals.