Africa Day 2022 – The year of nutrition
24 June 2022
Western Cape schools recently celebrated Africa Day.
This year's theme focused on the importance of addressing malnutrition and food insecurity.
The purpose of commemorating Africa Day is to celebrate African unity and the independence of African countries from colonial powers. This year’s commemoration provided an opportunity to raise awareness and gain a common understanding of different cultures, while addressing the existing malnutrition challenges that were highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic in our health and food systems.
The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) uploaded resources onto the ePortal to assist schools in the planning of activities to celebrate this important day. The resources included the African Union Anthem, recommended activities, and interesting facts about Africa. Schools were encouraged to learn about the continent of Africa through various activities and showcase greenhouses and food gardens to sustain nutrition at schools.
Schools with greenhouses include Roodezandt Secondary School, Skurweberg Second School, Overberg High School and Pelican Park High School. At Pelican Park, the produce is used for the feeding scheme. Learners and staff receive vegetable packs when available.
Siyakhula, a small-scale farming project was launched in 2017 on the campus of Christel House SA as a social enterprise initiative. The project consists of 15 tunnels and a pack house, which employs 10 to 15 employees and produce vegetables for the local market. Most of the employees are the parents of students.
Soneike High School is in the process of establishing the Soneike Science Centre for Sustainable Urban Agriculture. The school wants to empower learners to propagate plants and start an urban domestic vegetable garden project.
Kommandantsdrift Primary School incorporated celebrations of Africa Day into the curriculum by looking at Geo-maps, Africa and the globe in Social Sciences, studying patterns in Mathematics, reading traditional stories for Home Language and First Additional Language and doing art and movement as part of Life Skills. “This is how we open the world to our learners. Thank you WCED for the reminder, support and resource links shared,” the school added.
