Challenges and Opportunities of Utilising School Nutrition Programme to Achieve Educational Goals in South African Rural Communities

This study explored the challenges and opportunities faced by schools in utilising the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) to achieve educational goals in South Africa. The NSNP was established in post-apartheid South Africa as a poverty alleviation and educational democratisation measure to improve educational access, attendance, and participation outcomes of learners from poor socio-economic backgrounds. The thesis of this paper was informed by Maslow’s theory of the hierarchy of needs to explain how food is a basic need for learners to ascend to the level of learning aspirations. The study adopted a phenomenological paradigm and a qualitative research approach. Purposive sampling was employed to select 2 secondary school principals, 8 teachers responsible for NSNP and 10 learners who were beneficiaries of the NSNP within a rural community setting. The study used face-to-face and focus group interviews and observations for data collection. Data was analysed and interpreted thematically. The study revealed that challenges such as poor hygienic conditions, poor quality and poor nutrition value of the menu, and consumption of teaching and learning time compromised the quality of NSNP provision in schools. However, despite these challenges, schools in rural communities use the NSNP for school attendance. Keywords: National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP), South Africa, Educational Goals, Maslow’s Theory, Socio-economic Development