Education Minister Alausa Advocates School Role in Nutrition

On October 7, 2026, Dr. Morufu Olatunji Alausa, the Minister of Education, called for increased involvement of schools in addressing child malnutrition in Nigeria during the Ethiopia–Nigeria Leadership Exchange on Moving the Needle on Nutrition in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He advocated for stronger collaboration among government ministries and the three tiers of government.

Alausa identified key areas such as school feeding, school health, nutrition education, and improved access to quality education as vital contributions to the Nutrition 774 Initiative. He emphasized that tackling malnutrition requires a coordinated approach involving multiple sectors, supported by adequate funding and effective monitoring.

The Nutrition 774 Initiative aims to implement Nigeria’s nutrition priorities at the grassroots level across the 774 local government areas. Alausa highlighted the importance of school feeding in enhancing children's nutritional wellbeing and promoting school attendance.

He also mentioned the integration of nutrition-related content in the revised school curriculum and proposed education-related indicators for local government scorecards to monitor progress.