The effectiveness in the administration of the national school nutrition programme in King Williams Town in the Eastern Cape

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The Effectiveness in the Administration of the National School

Nutrition Programme in King Williams Town in the Eastern Cape

By

LINDA PHINX FILI

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of

MASTERS IN DEVELOPMENT STUDIES

In the Faculty of Economics and Business Sciences At the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University

Supervisor: Samantha Leonard

2013

CORE Metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk

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CHAPTER ONE

1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

1.1 Rationale

Health and education are two important aspects of human capital and form the basis of an individual’s economic productivity in any country. In South Africa, hunger and malnutrition continue to hamper the health, quality of life and survival of school going children such that some children drop- out of school due to these socio-economic problems (Tomlinson,2007:2).

The introduction of previous School Feeding Schemes to address the question of hunger and poverty within schools was mostly left in the 1980’s and 1990’s to charitable and Non-Governmental Organizations such as Operation Hunger and ITHUBA (Swartz, 2009:38). According to Perlman (1993:14) South Africa’s track record of child deaths was more than double that of any other country of similar income levels worldwide, due to the apartheid government deserting its responsibility of feeding the nation. The White Paper for the Transformation of Health System (1997: 125) had also stated that improving nutrition within the rural schools is an imperative and a sound economic investment which is politically rewarding. Nelson Mandela (1996:8) once said “Our children are our nation’s future. Prospects for development are seriously undermined by the kind of large scale deprivation of children that South Africa has experienced. On the other hand investing in their health, nutrition and education not only improves our children’s quality of life – the gains reverberate into the future generations. ”

From April 1994, through the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) the Government of National Unity under the leadership of Dr. Nelson Mandela identified the area of school feeding as a policy prime concern in redressing the imbalances and inequities of the past governments. Another initiative to redress the inequities of the past, was through the programme of Poverty Reduction which manifested itself in lack of income, lack of education

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and skills, lack of access to services and amenities and lack of ownership of land and housing (Public Service Commission, 2007:vi).

In the early stages, 1996-2003 the School Feeding Programme was coordinated by the departments of health, both nationally and provincially,, because it was regarded primarily as a poverty alleviation health promoting initiative. This initiative was done to fulfill section 28(1) (c) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Bill of Rights, which states that every South African child “has a right to basic nutrition.”

In 2004 the School Feeding Programme was under intense pressure due to corruption and the breakdown of the services particularly in the Eastern Cape. Thus, in 2004 the Department of Education took over the administration of feeding the school children under the auspices of National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) as they were perceived to be in a better position since the NSNP is implemented at schools. The programme is funded by conditional grants, administered at provincial level by directly reporting to National Department of Education for compliance on the three pillars which are School Feeding, Nutrition Education and Sustainable Food Production in Schools (SFPS). The NSNP will be utilized and monitored at provincial, district and school level, focusing on the Grant beneficiaries’ school children.

Feeding resumed in February 2007 with the appointment of 56 service providers to deliver foodstuffs to 1 265 062 learners. Finalization of the new School Nutrition Programme Implementation Model which adhered to the National guidelines where learners were served with varied menus was formally launched in a School Nutrition Programme (SNP) Indaba held in July 2007 where various stakeholders endorsed the model. Tenders were awarded to 134 service providers in January 2008 to provide schools with nutrition.

The NSNP targeted learners from grade R–4 under quintiles 1-5, and grades up to 7 under quintiles 1-3. During the 2010/2011 financial year the NSNP was extended to Secondary schools under quintile 1 up to 3 respectively. The aim of the NSNP was to provide meals to mostly

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needy learners, who came from poor backgrounds. The meals are intended to enhance learning and also provide physical health. The Department of Education in collaboration with private companies such as Mass Mart Holding Limited, Hullets, CTP Printers, Shop Talk, HKLM Group and Mykel Nicolaus Photography developed and printed a recipe book titled “MNANDI 4 SURE” menu which has been distributed to schools. The recipe book will assist food handlers to prepare a variety of meals that are palatable and nutritious. The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (UNFAO) funded a baseline study of school communities’ knowledge, attitudes and perceptions on food gardens and nutrition education.

The NSNP was fraught with problems as the Eastern Cape Department of Education failed to feed learners during March 2008 at the Dutywa, Mthatha and East London Education Districts (EC DoE Annual Report 2008/2009:86). The service providers were not remunerated timeously for the services rendered as a result this affected service delivery within the NSNP at the above mentioned districts. The meal servers are unemployed, poor women from the communities who serve the meals to the learners and the department had to remunerate them in a form of a stipend. According to the Annual Report of the Province of the Eastern Cape Department of Education (2008/2009:86) the Public Service which manages the programs failed to honor payments of services rendered and the meal servers were not remunerated.

This research will focus on the administrative shift of the day to day activities of the NSNP management of funds and the procurement of food from the Department of Education in the Eastern Cape to be handled by the schools both under section 20 and 21 of the South African Schools Act of 1996 commonly referred to as Section 20 and 21 schools. Whereas, in the previous feeding schemes the management of funds and procurement was the responsibility of the Department of Education.

Furthermore, this study will evaluate the effective and efficient administration of the NSNP within 6 schools in the King William’s Town district which is overseen by the Department of Education in the Eastern Cape Province.

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1.2 Research Question

How effective is the administration of the current National School Nutrition Programme: A study of six schools in King Williams Town of the Eastern Cape Province.

1.2.1

Sub-questions

 How are the NSNP funds allocated and administered?

 How effective is the menu system used by each school?

 Where and how is the food being procured?

 Are the various stakeholders / role players fulfilling their designated roles?

1.3 Research objective

The research objective is to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency in the administration of the current NSNP using six schools in the King Williams Town district as case studies. Secondly the research will also review the current legislation and policies governing the role of stakeholders in the NSNP.

1.4 Research Aim

The aim of the study is to evaluate the administration of the current NSNP at six schools within the King Williams Town district. The researcher will highlight the successes and strengths of the NSNP and make recommendations on how to rectify the loop-holes and weaknesses within the administration and management of the NSNP.

1.5 Scope and scale of the research

The study is limited to three primary schools under Section 20 and three senior secondary schools under Section 21 within the King William’s Town District in the Eastern Cape Province and the NSNP coordinator at provincial level.

King William’s Town district is within close proximity to Bisho which is the capital city of the Eastern Cape and is made up of Zwelitsha Township and other surrounding areas. During the Apartheid era this area was known as Ciskei Bantustan under the leadership of Dr. L.L. Sebe. It had been characterized by a high rate of unemployment, poverty and crime. Hence, this research will contribute to the body of knowledge in Development Studies; because no scientific study has been carried out on this matter before.

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1.6 Limitations of the study

 The limitation was that educators were reluctant to divulge the information on the shortcomings of the NSNP because they feared that the researcher might be trying to catch them up and they might get into trouble with the Department.

 Some respondents responded with a Yes or No answer until the researcher probed

them further.

 The interviews were during the time of the schedules and reports for the third term.

 The barrier on language was overcome by the researcher being able to speak the language of the School Governing Body respondents (IsiXhosa).

 The researcher would have studied the NSNP on more than six schools but there were time constraints.

 The research is limited to six schools within the King William’s town.

Despite the above – mentioned limitations the study collected enough data to facilitate detailed analysis.

1.7 Literature Review

The researcher has undertaken a literature survey both locally and internationally to see how other scholars and governments have evaluated the implementation of the NSNP, this has enabled the researcher to determine the research problem clearly. Relevant publications, policies and legislation have been consulted. The researcher has consulted the above on a small scale, as interrogation of literature will be done in chapter 2 of this study.

1.8 Research Methodology

The researcher has utilized a qualitative or interpretative approach. This research methodology necessitates a reflection on planning, structuring and execution of the research in order to comply with the demands of truth, objectivity and validity Brynard&Hanekom (2006:36), Babbie and Mouton, (2005: 28),Leedy and Ormrod (2001:153).

Again, this approach is used because the researcher would like to get the views of the stakeholders who are entrusted with the responsibility of administering the NSNP within their

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respective schools. The responses of the respondents will be evaluated against the policy framework of the Department of Education on the NSNP. According to Finch (1986:158) and Mouton (2005:194), a broad role for qualitative policy evaluation, is to describe and understand the real effects of policies, to compare the assumptions upon which policies are based with social experiences and to assist in considered assessment of their viability.

1.8.1. Sampling

The sampling technique that will be used is purposive sampling, because the participants are selected for some defining characteristics, the setting and activities included for data collection (Maree 2007:79, Neuman, 2003:213).

1.8.2. Subjects

The research participants in each and every school will be the principal, coordinator of NSNP, one school governing board (SGB) member and NSNP coordinator from the district. These will be checked along with the NSNP policies and legislation. The information will be gathered from the primary sources which are principals, educators, School Governing Body members, NSNP coordinator from the district and secondary sources which are published reports, government documents, policies and legislation governing the NSNP both locally and internationally.

1.8.3. Data Collection

The instruments that will be used for this study to collect data will be interviews. The researcher will prepare an interview schedule which will consist of structured and semi- structured interviews, along with the literature review.

1.8.4. The Data analysis

The researcher will use thematic analysis which refers to the process of analyzing data according to commonalities, relationships, and differences across a data set (Gibson & Brown 2009: 127- 128), for an example the themes on policies, administration, management of NSNP etc. Over and above, the collected data will be analyzed by using corroboration, where the researcher will make a comparison of what the other stakeholders said at their respective schools against the others. Secondly the researcher

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will do coding where the researcher will take same responses and batch them together and interpret structure or reflect on the input of the participants.

1.8.5. The ways in which data will be justified as evidence

The structured interviews will give written feedback from participants, audio-visual recordings done during interviews, journal to show reflection on categories and indicators. The responses from the various stakeholders will be corroborated against each other and through the policies governing the NSNP.

CHAPTER TWO

2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1. Introduction

The previous chapter provided a general framework in support of the aims of the study. This chapter provides perspectives on the implementation of the NSNP from various scholars and draws connections from the research question. The purpose is to give a clear understanding of what has been written about the subject.

Before 1994 South Africa was ruled by a repressive white minority government that used the instruments of state power to deny equality to all non-white South Africans. Through a highly organized system, known as apartheid (

separateness

), non-white South Africans were politically, socially, legally and economically discriminated against to the advantage of white

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South Africans (Beinart,2001 :322-327). This apartheid system was legalized in 1948 by the Nationalist Party under the leadership of Dr. D.F. Malan. This led to non-white South Africans being segregated in the workplace as whites were ranked first in the job market with better work opportunities(civilized labour) and offered higher wages against non-white South Africans uncivilized labour and meager wages. This created disparities in the economic sector with the minority of white South Africans enjoying “food security” and the majority of non-white South Africans exploited and suffering in “poverty.”

Unemployment, underemployment and lack of skills became the order of the day leading to rural communities migrating to the urban areas where they suffered harsh pass laws and discrimination and ended up in squatter camps, jobless or only earning enough to feed them, thus leading their families in the rural areas into dire poverty.

According to Vincent (1991) cited by Alcock (1993:9), poverty is created by social and economic policies which have developed over time to respond to or control poverty and those who are poor. He further states that there is an interrelation between poverty and policy and this has consistently shaped the position of poor people within all aspects of the broader social structure. This is true as mentioned in the above case of the apartheid policy which led to non-white South Africans living in squalor and extreme poverty for decades.

“Poverty means going short materially, socially and emotionally. It means spending less on food, on clothing and on heating than someone on an average income. Above all poverty takes away the tools to build the blocks for the future – your “life chances”. It steals away the opportunity to have a life unmarked by sickness, a decent education, a secure home and a long retirement” (Oppenheim, 1990:3).

The concept of food security as adopted in Rome at the World Food Summit(1996) means “food security exists when people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life”(1996:10). Poverty is closely related to the above concepts of malnutrition, hunger and food security, as defined by (Townsend 1979:31) “Individuals, families and groups in the population can be said to be in poverty when they lack the resources to obtain the types of diet, participate in the activities and have the living conditions and amenities which are customary in the societies to which they belong” (ibid).

In 1994 the first democratic elections in South Africa had been won by the African National Congress with a majority of nearly 66%, and the Government of National Unity led by Dr. Nelson R. Mandela as the first Black President (Beinart, 2001:322-327).South Africa is considered a middle-income country compared to its counterpart African States, but it has one of the highest internal income disparities in the world. The ANC launched the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) in 1994 in order to redress the inequities and imbalances of the apartheid regime, but poverty in South Africa is still a concern. The first five years after democracy (1995-2000) showed that teasing out the trends in poverty and inequality has been difficult and contentious due to the disparities in income. Through the RDP the government had

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expanded its social grants programme, in 1999 over 2.5.million people were receiving social grants; by 2007 this figure had risen to 12million (Stats SA, October Household Survey for 1994-1998 and General Household Survey for 2002-2005).

One of the key drivers of poverty in South Africa is the persistence of unemployment and underemployment. Between 1994 and 2007, the unemployment rate in South Africa had risen from 20% to 25, 5%, meaning that some 4.3million South Africans were out of work at the end of 2007 (ibid).Using the expanded definition of unemployment, which includes those who have given up looking for work, the unemployment rate at the end of 2007 was 38, 3%, or 7.8.million South Africans (ibid). While this figure had slowly come down since its peak in 2003, chronic levels of unemployment and underemployment continue to result in high levels of poverty in South Africa.

“Eastern Cape is located in the south-eastern section of South Africa and the largest and poorest of South Africa’s nine provinces. Poverty levels in the province are higher than the national average. Figures released by the government at the end of 2007 using its limited definition of poverty (less than $31 a month) indicated that while 23% of South Africans lived in poverty overall some 29% of people located in the Eastern Cape lived in poverty. Unemployment levels in the province are also higher than the national average. Using the expanded definition of unemployment, 42.9% of its residence was unemployed at the end of 2007, compared to a national average of 38.3%. This equates to the third highest provincial unemployment rate in the country. While the province has a population of 6.9 million, or 14% of the total South African population, some 2.5 million of its citizens received social grants, which equated to 21% of the total number of social grants received in South Africa. The reliance of social grants clearly indicated the level of poverty which existed within the province” (Overy, 2010: 20).

In 2000, the United Nations met in Dakar to commit itself to the eradication of hunger and the attainment of universal primary education. School feeding programs (SFPs) are one of the main interventions used to address these challenges. School feeding falls squarely within the field of the UN declaration, and at least three of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), namely MDG 1 to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, MDG 2 to achieve universal primary education and MDG 3 to promote gender equality and empower women. Furthermore, the greater focus on educational objectives arising from the UN commitments had seen the number of SFPs, funded by governments, donors and NGOs, mainly from Africa, increase greatly in the past five to 10 years (Bennett, 2003). According to Pieterse and van Wyk, (2006:38) about 1.6 million children were stunted by malnutrition and 43% of households were suffering from some level of food poverty and high levels of inequity in South Africa remained particularly high.

As a result of the scarcity and non-affordability of food commodities, most poor people suffered from malnutrition, which made them prone to various diseases and poor health. Hunger and malnutrition had become a global phenomenon, which should be eradicated as a matter of urgency. In order to eradicate poverty and malnutrition, the government had a

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specific role to play. Every government is bound by its Constitution to provide for the basic needs of the poor and vulnerable members of its society. A country’s most valuable resource is its human capital. To ensure that its human capital enjoyed the best nutritional well-being that they deserved, governments worldwide are obligated to ensure that they devised policies and strategies to reduce levels of poverty and hunger. These strategies and policies should be implemented at all levels of government, namely national, provincial and local (World Food Summit Declaration, 2008:43).

In South Africa, the following deficiencies have been noted:

 25% of children under five suffer from moderate to severe stunting.

 12% of children under five suffer from moderate to severe underweight.

 3% of children under five suffer from moderate to severe wasting.

 33% of children under six suffer from subclinical vitamin A deficiency.

 21% suffer from nutritional anemia. UNICEF, South Africa Statistics, updated 2004(South African Medical Research Counsel: 2009:21).

Although information on zinc deficiency in South Africa is scarce, a study carried out by the Nutritional Intervention Research Unit demonstrated that 27% of preschool children and 34% of primary school children in a rural community in KwaZulu-Natal are zinc deficient. In spite of mandatory iodization of table salt, there is still evidence of iodine deficiency in rural areas, (South African Medical Research Counsel, 2009:21)

In low-income countries, poor health in the form of chronic protein-energy malnutrition, iron-deficiency anemia, iodine iron-deficiency or helminthic infections, contributed significantly to poor educational outcomes. Traditionally, health and education have been seen as separate domains (Child Health Unit, 1997:24), with a consequent separation of responsibilities between government departments. Increasingly, however, the inseparable link between health and education is being acknowledged, and there is compelling evidence that shows how children's education can benefit from broad health and nutrition interventions (Del Rosso and Marek, 1996:2).The goals of food security include the reduction of short-term hunger and the improvement of the nutritional status of school children, thereby reducing levels of malnutrition.

South African files of poverty show that Africans and females in particular are consistently the lowest for all bands of households’ expenditure (Statistics South Africa, 2000:13). According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (2002:19) report of the State of Food Insecurity in the world, the three most critical deficiencies for South Africa was for vitamin A, iodine and iron. Lack of vitamin A was reported to impair the immune system, while iodine reduces mental capacity and iron led to fatigue and dizziness.

The School Feeding Scheme was originally introduced as the Primary School Nutrition Programme (PSNP), which is now known as the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP). The PSNP was introduced by President Mandela at the opening of the first democratic parliament of South Africa, in May 1994, as one of the Presidential Lead Projects to be

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implemented country-wide in all primary schools. It also formed part of the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP). The programme received an allocation of R487 million from the RDP Fund in the 1994/95 financial year and R500 million in subsequent years. The aims of the PSNP were to improve learners’ learning capacity, alleviate poverty and empower women. According to Kallman (2005:7) the school feeding programs throughout the world had successfully attracted poor children to school and retained them by offering what they would probably not get elsewhere, namely hot food or nourished snacks.

2.2. POLICY IMPLEMENTATION

According to the Public Service Commission Report (2008:5), the aims of the NSNP, analyzed from both the objectives of the Department of Health’s era and the Department of Education’s era involve: Contributing to the improvement of education by enhancing primary school pupil’s learning capacity, school attendance, punctuality, and contributing to the general health development by alleviating hunger.

 Educating pupils on nutrition and also improving their nutritional status through micro-nutrition supplementation.

 Eradicating parasites wherever indicated.

 Developing the nutrition component of the general education curriculum.

The democratic government of South Africa remained committed in its mandate of redressing the inequities and imbalances of the past, including poverty alleviation and hunger. The researcher has analyzed the important provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (and other Statutory Acts, regulations and policies.

2.2.1. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act No.108 of

1996)

The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act No. 108 of 1996) is the supreme law of the Republic and has the final say in all statutes of this country. The aims of the NSNP were interconnected to the stipulations in the Bill of Rights, the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Sections 27, 28 and 29) which recognized and emphasized the constitutional rights of citizens to health care, food, social security and education. The important sections of the Constitution related to the NSNP are:

 Section 27 (1) (b) on the right of access to sufficient food.

 Section 28 (1) (c) on the right of children to basic nutrition.

 Section 29 (1) (a) on the right to basic education.

With respect to Section 29 (1) (a), the government has linked the National School Nutrition Programme to the right to basic education by asserting that, “the NSNP was primarily designed to provide direct services to learners to reduce hunger and to alleviate the effect of malnutrition on their learning capacity”(Kloka 2003:21).

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Del Ross (1999:6), argues that “nutritional and health positions are powerful influences on a child’s learning performance in school. Children who lack certain nutrients in their diet (particularly iron and iodine) or who suffer from protein-energy malnutrition, hunger, parasitic infections or other diseases, do not have the same potential for learning as healthy and well-nourished children do. Poor health and nutrition among school-age children diminish their cognitive development either through physiological changes or by reducing their ability to participate in learning experiences or both.”

According to Kallman (2005: 3), “children’s right to basic nutrition entitles them to require that the State guarantees that they receive at least a level of nutrition that enables dignified survival, and basic physical and mental development. This imposed two sets of constitutional duties on the State. First, it must take steps, regulatory and otherwise, to ensure that those parents or family members provide for their nutritional needs. These steps ensure that parents meet their constitutional duties towards their children. Second, the State must provide for the nutritional needs of those children, whose parents or family members are unable to care for them, either because they are absent, or for reasons of poverty or other forms of incapacity. The State must meet this latter duty by supporting parents and family members in their efforts to provide the nutritional needs of their children and in appropriate cases provide food directly for their children.” This can be interpreted to imply that the State has a major duty of justification to show that its nutritional policies prioritize the basic needs of children, both on paper and in terms of budgetary allocations and implementation measures (Kallman, 2005: 4). Section 28 (1) (c), of the Constitution on the right of the child to basic nutrition, is honored by both the National and Provincial Departments of Education through the guidelines on the NSNP. The implementation of the NSNP is limited to learners from poor communities through the measure of quintiles as prescribed by the Norms and Standards for School Funding 1999.

2.2.2. Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) of November

1994

Kallman (2005: 4), states that The White Paper on Reconstruction and Development

Programme, tabled in Parliament on the 15 November 1994, had set out the government’s

initial plans to address the problems of poverty and inequality. Annexure One of the White Paper contained information on the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) Lead Projects. The Primary School Nutrition Programme appeared on that list as Project 3.3.under the broader Human Resource and Development Programme.

In terms of the RDP policy (1994:4) the aim of the RDP is to:

 Contribute to the improvement of education quality by enhancing primary school pupil’s learning capacity, school attendance and punctuality and contribute to general health development by alleviating hunger.

 Educate pupils on nutrition and also improve nutritional status through micro-nutrition supplementation.

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 Develop the nutrition component of the general education curriculum.

The scope of the RDP is the provisioning of an early snack, meeting 30% of the energy requirement, to 3.8 million children (50% of primary school children) in areas targeted on the basis of poverty criteria, particularly rural areas and peri-urban informal settlements (ibid). Project committees at identified schools will submit proposals to provincial teams for appraisal and approval. Training and capacity building targeted in order to ensure effective implementation and to link other education quality improvement and community development initiatives into the national nutrition scheme. The envisaged output of the scheme was the implementation in fifty schools per province by September 1994.

2.2.3. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children as ratified

by the Republic of South Africa on May 1996

“The Convention on the Rights of the Child is an international treaty that recognizes the human rights of children, defined up to the age of 18 years. In its 41 substantive articles, it established in International Law that States Parties must ensure that all children, without any discrimination, should benefit from the special protection measures and assistance; have access to health care services and education; can develop their personalities, abilities and talents to their fullest potential; grow up in an environment of happiness, love and understanding; and are informed about and participate in achieving their rights in an accessible and active manner” (Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1996: 1). The Committee on the Rights of the Child is an internationally elected body of independent experts that sits in Geneva to monitor the Convention’s implementation. In South Africa, the National Programme of Action, launched in the 1996, is designed to achieve coordination of governmental and non-governmental plans in favor of children and to ensure the merging of such plans within the frameworks of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the World Summit for Children, and the national Reconstruction and Development Programme (National Programme of Action for Children in South Africa, 1996: 1)

Article 27 of the Convention for the Rights of the Child is in line with the aims of the NSNP as expounded in the introductory chapter of this research. Article 27(1) and (3) indicated that the State Parties recognized the right of every child to a standard of living adequate for the child’s physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development, and that the State Parties in agreement with national conditions and with their means, shall take appropriate measures to assist parents and others responsible for the child to implement this right and shall in case of need provide material assistance and support programs, particularly with regard to nutrition, clothing and housing, (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989: 10)

2.2.4. Norms and Standards for School Funding of 1999

This policy was implemented in August 1999, and was amended in 2006 and promulgated in January 2007, (Province of the Eastern Cape Department of Education, 2006: 3). The policy dealt with how the State redressed the imbalances of the past with reference to funding public

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schools, exempting parents who cannot afford to pay school fees and State subsidies to independent schools. The basic principles of the State funding of public schools as derived from the constitutional guarantee of equality and recognition of the right to rectifying the inequities of the past. The Constitution makes it clear that the State must progressively provide the resources to safeguard the right to education and the right to basic nutrition. However, because educational needs always exceed resources, public funding must target the needs of the poorest (Province of the Eastern Department of Education, 2006:4). The target for learners in the poorest quintile, that is, quintile 1, was R738 per year in 2007, whereas the target for learners in the least poor quintile was R123 per year (Province of the Eastern Department of Education 2006:8). This is evidence of a conscious decision by the new government in South Africa to redress the imbalances of the past by supporting the school in poor communities to afford schooling for the children as these funds are meant to address needs of the school, which poor parents cannot afford to pay.

Children from poor families had in the past been denied access to education due to unavailability of money to pay for school fees, and as a result, they were either refused admission to school or expelled when fees were not paid. This was experienced and observed by the researcher during the secondary schooling years. The NSNP funding, which is a conditional grant to Provincial Departments of Education from the National Department of Education through the National Treasury, becomes additional funding to qualifying schools on top of the school’s allocation, which is paid in terms of the Norms and Standards for School Funding. The poorest schools are therefore supported to ensure the learners of poor parents remain at school. Unlike the funds from the Norms and Standards for School Funding, which are allocated and finally run by the schools themselves, the NSNP conditional grant is managed by the Department of Education officials running the NSNP.

2.2.5. Public Finance Management Act No. 1 of 1999

The use of public funds is governed by the Public Finance Management Act 1 of 1999 (PFMA) (updated in 2009) in South Africa. The purpose of the PFMA is to regulate financial management in the national and provincial governments; to ensure that all revenue, expenditure, assets and liabilities of those governments are managed efficiently and effectively; to provide for the responsibilities of persons entrusted with financial management in those governments; and to provide for matters connected therewith, (PFMA, 1999, Sections 6(1) (g) and 18(1)(c). Any act of unauthorized expenditure, an irregular expenditure or a fruitless and wasteful expenditure, is regarded as financial misconduct. If sections 44 and 81 of the PFMA are concurrently read, this refers to all employees of government. Managing finance, in the spirit of the PFMA, is not limited to financial controls, but commitments that the government makes through budgeting, which have to be honored. If a Provincial Department of Education budgets for the NSNP and also gets a grant from the National Department of Education, such monies have to be used for the purpose they were budgeted for.

Key objectives of the PFMA are to enable public sector managers to manage, but at the same time be more accountable, and to eliminate waste and corruption in the use of public funds.

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The conditional grant for the NSNP is public funds, and the efficient and effective use of these funds is depended on full application control measures of the PFMA by all the managers in the public sector. It is a concern that the NSNP is having one Commission after another because of the allegations of corruption, which result in the NSNP running out of funds. This state of affairs consequently impact on the effective and efficient implementation of the NSNP, despite the existence of PFMA control measures in the employment contracts of all public sector managers, including those who are managing the NSNP. The National Guidelines of the NSNP emphasized proper procurement process, which relate to Chapter 5 of the PFMA (The National Guidelines of the NSNP, 1994: 14-27).

2.2.6. Constitutional provisions

In terms of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996), government Intended to improve the quality of life of all citizens and free the potential of each

Person Cloete (1997:78) stated that the number of conciliatory provisions from the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996). Firstly, Constitution (1996) provided for the Bill of Rights, which secured a number of rights. In terms of Section 28 (1) (c) of the Constitution (1996), every child has the right to basic nutrition, shelter, basic care services and social services. Secondly, the Constitution (1996: 25) provided for the principles of co-operative governance in inter-governmental relations, which stated that all spheres of government and all organs of state within each sphere must:

 preserve the peace, the national unity and the indivisibility of the Republic; secure the well-being of the people of the Republic;

 provide effective, transparent, accountable and coherent government for the Republic as a whole; be loyal to the Constitution, the Republic and its people; respect the constitutional status, institutions, powers and functions of government in the other spheres; not assume any power or function except those conferred on them in terms of the Constitution exercise their powers and perform their functions in a manner that does not infringe on the geographical, functional or institutional integrity of movement in another sphere; and co-operate with one another in mutual and good faith by

o Fostering friendly relations;

o Assisting and supporting one another;

 Informing one another of, and consulting one another on, matters of common interest;

 Coordinating their actions and legislation with one another;

 Adhering to agreed procedures; and

 Avoiding legal proceedings against one another.”

2.3. Critic of International Models of School Nutrition Programmes

Both Brazil and India had experienced certain challenges during implementation of the programme such as the key challenges where a lack of managerial skills among stakeholders involved in the programme such as principals, teachers, food suppliers, and members of the SGB, a lack of community consultation and participation, insufficient involvement of intra- and

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inter- sectorial partners and inconsistency and low coverage of the number of feeding days (Report of the Evaluation of the NSNP 2008: 7)

CHAPTER THREE

3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1. Introduction

This chapter will describe the methods and techniques that were employed during the research study, and explain the ways in which data was gathered. Research is noted as “an activity involving an investigation into a phenomenon with a view to better understand that phenomenon through the process of collecting and analyzing data that has been obtained by following universally accepted procedures” (Allen, 2008:31). Research methodology is a scientific method, which encompasses the “logical and systematic process to observation of phenomenon, which is used to solve problems and build a body of knowledge that is free from bias, prejudice and personal convictions’’(Allen, 2008:32).

The researcher will discuss the research design and the method that was used to achieve the research objectives. The Research Methodology focuses on the research process, the kind of tools, and the most objective “unbiased” procedures to be used(Mouton 2001: 56).Brynard and Hanekom (1997:27) define research methodology as “the how of collecting data and the processing thereof within the framework of the research process. Moreover, it also identifies two methodologies for collecting data, namely quantitative and qualitative methods, and

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indicates that both methods make use of specific techniques to collect data. Inter alia, literature review interviews, questionnaires and direct observation.”

The researcher used qualitative method, according to Brynard and Hanekom (1997:29), “indispensable condition or qualification for qualitative methodology is a commitment to seeing the world from the point of view for the actor or participant.’’ Brynard and Hanekom (1997:29) explain that qualitative methodology refers to research that produces descriptive data. The methods used for the construction of data collection instrument, sample selection, data collection and data analysis, are explained in this chapter within the context of the research question of this study: How effective is the administration of the National School Nutrition Programme: A study of six schools in the King William’s Town district of the Eastern Cape.

The researcher is further guided by the specific questions below in finding the answers to the question above:

 How are the NSNP funds allocated and administered?

 How effective is the menu system used by each school?

 Where and how is the food being procured?

 Are the various stakeholders / role players fulfilling their designated roles?

3.1.1.

Advantages of Qualitative Research

 According to Patton (2002: 11) qualitative research permits the evaluator to study selective issues, cases or events in depth and detail.

 Data collection is not constrained by predetermined categories of analysis allowing for levels of depth and detail that quantitative strategies can’t provide.

 Qualitative approach is well suited for exploration, discovery and inductive logic

 Evaluators strive to understand programming and situations as a whole, there’s an ongoing search for totality the unifying nature of particular settings.

 A holistic stance assumes the understanding of the product depends on awareness of its political and social context.

 Greater awareness of the perspectives on programs and participants.

 Capability for understanding dynamic developments in a program or process as it evolves.

 Awareness of time and history

3.2. Research Assumptions

The researcher intends to find out the problems experienced by schools now that the Department of Education in the Eastern Cape has shifted the day to day activities of the NSNP on the management of funds and the procurement of food to the schools. Secondly how the

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schools are managing the NSNP funds allocated by the Department of Education? Thirdly are the schools adhering to the guidelines on the NSNP menu? Lastly are stakeholders aware of their roles and responsibilities concerning the administration of the NSNP?

The researcher has experienced first- hand the problems at her respective school as the Department of Education shifted the administration of the NSNP to schools, to manage funds, procure food and pay the food handlers. Therefore the researcher will prove that the schools will experience problems in the administration of NSNP.

3.3. The Scope and Scale of the Study

The scope of the study was restricted to six schools within the King Williams Town (KWT) district of the Department of Education in the Eastern Cape. The study evaluated the effectiveness and efficiency in the administration of the NSNP within the six schools in the KWT district.

3.3.1. The Principals

The principals have been chosen as one of the participants for the study because they are accounting officers of the school to the parents through the School Governing Body and to the Department of Education on all school administration and governance issues, which include the NSNP.

3.3.2. Teacher Coordinators

Teacher coordinators have been included in the study because they are the custodians of the NSNP when it comes to linking with the District Office, food handlers and learners. Moreover, document management for the payment of food handlers and food procurement is controlled by teacher coordinators.

3.3.3. Chairpersons of the School Governing Body

It is appropriate to include Chairpersons of the School Governing Bodies as they have an overarching responsibility regarding school governance, which includes the smooth running of the school programs, as well as the NSNP.

3.3.4. District Coordinator

The inclusion of the District Coordinator is important because he is in charge of running, managing, and monitoring the (NSNP) implementation and schools report directly to him on how the funds allocated had been used.

3.3.5. Research Sites

The research was limited to three primary schools under Section 20 and in quintile 1; the other three are secondary schools under Section 21 in quintile 3. All of the above are within the King William’s Town district (KWT) in the Eastern Cape Province.

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3.3.6. Research Design

The researcher has employed the qualitative research method as explained above and the methods of data collection would be structured interviews and unstructured interviews. The interviews involved direct interaction between the researcher and the respondents. The advantages of unstructured interviews are that the data collected is said to be valid as it is an exact account of what the interviewee had said. The researcher can also find out important information which did not seem relevant before the interview and ask the interviewee to go further into the new topic. The disadvantage of interviews in general is the ‘Interviewer effect. “This is when the interviewee response is affected by the presence of the researcher due to either his /her race, ethnicity color or response to certain answers. Unstructured interviews can be also time consuming as the conversation can go on and on. On the other hand structured interviews are easy to analyze especially when synthesizing across respondents’’ (Dr. Gerber CTLM NMMU, South Africa: 2011: 50).

The primary sources were the school principals, SGB’s, Educator coordinators and district coordinator (NSNP). The secondary sources were the NSNP documents and policies which were analyzed along the NSNP guidelines.

3.3.7. Research Limitations

The limitation was that educators were reluctant to divulge the information on the shortcomings of the NSNP because they feared that the researcher might be trying to catch them up and that might get them into trouble with the Department.

 Some respondents responded with a Yes or No answer until the researcher probed them further.

 The interviews were during the time of the schedules and reports for the third term. This created problems as educators stated that they were busy, but the researcher was persistent and managed to get the interviews.

 The barrier on language was overcome by the researcher being able to speak the language of the School Governing Body respondents (IsiXhosa).

 The researcher would have studied the NSNP on more than six schools but there was time constraint.

 The research is limited to six schools within the King William’s town.

Despite the above – mentioned limitations the study collected enough data to facilitate a detailed analysis.

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3.3.8. Verification

The structured interviews gave written feedback from the respondent, the audio- visual recordings done during the interviews, the journals showed the reflections on categories and indicators. The responses from the various stakeholders were able to be corroborated against each other by collaborating what the respondents said with the NSNP policies and guidelines governing the NSNP.

The researcher had written a list of questions for each respondent, that is the principal, the NSNP school coordinator and the SGB member of the respective schools. Each respondent answered the questions separately and independently of each other in order for the researcher to have independent, own response in order to find an individual reflection on the problems experienced on the administration of the NSNP within the six schools in the King William’s Town district in the Eastern Cape Province. This also assisted the researcher to get the accurate results and picture of each respondent’s experience at these various schools. In conclusion the researcher would do descriptive, interpretative and external validity where the researcher would suggest that there are flaws in the NSNP management and implementation at schools through the respondents, the policies, documentation and legislation.

CHAPTER FOUR

This chapter reports on the qualitative and quantitative data that was gathered in an attempt to answer the central question in this study namely,’ How effective is the administration of the current National School Nutrition Program at six schools within King William’s Town District of the Eastern Cape Department of Education? The data was collected from the six principals of the sampled schools, NSNP educator coordinating NSNP at the school, The School Governing Body member from each of the six schools and the NSNP Provincial coordinator. The researcher has employed thematic analysis as explained by Braun and Clarke (2006: 79) as a qualitative analytic method for identifying, analyzing and reporting themes within data and further interprets various aspects of the research topic. Secondly structured interviews were used to produce data that would be easily summarized, compared and generalized. For analyzing the data, triangulation was used to increase the credibility and reliability of the findings. The

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responses of the respondents were categorized according to the themes covered by the researcher in order to fulfill the central question in this study.

The findings formed the core of the study as they related directly to the Research Question and the Research Problem. In this research the researcher argues that the ‘administrative shift’ of the day to day activities of the National School Nutrition Program, management of funds and procurement of food which was previously handled by the Department of Education (D.O.E) in the Eastern Cape and now transferred to the Section 20 and 21 schools respectively resulted in the ineffective and inefficient administration of the NSNP in the King William’s Town District of the Eastern Cape.

To establish the validity of the above statement that the ‘shift’ of the day to day activities of managing the funds and procuring the food for the schools with regards to the NSNP within the schools by the Department of Education, the researcher engaged the principals, the educator coordinating NSNP, the SGB member at the six schools, used the literature and policies governing the NSNP and the researcher has used the following themes to answer the central question.

 The inconsistencies in the allocation of funds by the Department of Education.

 The contradictions and ambiguity of stakeholders on their roles in the administration of the NSNP funds within their schools.

 The discrepancies within the schools regarding the use of the menu system.

4.1. The inconsistencies in the allocation of funds by the Department of

Education.

The purpose of the Public Finance Management Act No. 1 of 1999(updated in 2009) in South Africa, is to govern and regulate financial management in the national and provincial governments, ensuring that all public funds and assets are managed efficiently and effectively by managers designated with such responsibilities. The (PFMA, 1999, Sections 6(1)(g) and 18(1)(c) states that managing finance does not only refer to financial controls, but also to the commitments that the government makes through budgeting, which have to be honored. The conditional grant for the NSNP is public funds, and the efficient and effective use of these funds is dependent on full application and the control measures of the PFMA by all the managers in the public sector.

The structured interviews revealed that out of the six principals interviewed on the inconsistency of the EC DoE in allocating the NSNP funds to schools only one school was not affected and the other five schools were severely affected.

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This resulted in the schools being unable to fulfill their obligation to provide learners with food for quite a number of days. This led to the infringement of learner’s human rights as stated in the Bill of Rights, of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Sections 27, 28 and 29) which recognized and emphasized the constitutional rights of citizens to health care, food, social security and education.

Secondly the service providers and the food handlers were not timeously paid, due to monies deposited at a later stage by the Department of Education for the NSNP, thus resulting in the service providers withdrawing their services and also refusing to grant food on credit to schools.

Thirdly as sited in the interviews by the principals and the NSNP Provincial coordinator, that the NSNP funds could not be differentiated from the monies the schools received from the Department of Education as there were no NSNP transfer slips from the Finance Department to the schools which would indicate without any doubt that the funds were solely for the NSNP. Three of the six schools were able to differentiate that the funds were allocated solely for the NSNP as one principal of the three schools had requested the bank to set up a certain code for the NSNP funds. The other two had friends in the department who assisted them by indicating that the NSNP funds had been deposited.

The three remaining schools ended up mismanaging the NSNP funds by redirecting them to the other needs of the school such as procuring examination material during exams. Thus in breach of the (PFMA, 1999, Sections 6(1) (g) and 18(1)(c). Any act of unauthorized expenditure, an irregular expenditure or a fruitless and wasteful expenditure, is regarded as financial misconduct. If sections 44 and 81 of the PFMA are concurrently read, this refers to all employees of government. Managing finance, in the spirit of the PFMA, is not limited to financial controls, but commitments that the government makes through budgeting, which have to be honored. If a Provincial Department of Education budgets for the NSNP and also gets a grant from the National Department of Education, such monies have to be used for the purpose they were budgeted for. The principals mentioned in their interviews that the transport and the utensils funds were not allocated for by the Department of Education and this impacted negatively on the NSNP funds as the school had to subtract from the NSNP funds to pay for the transportation of food and also buy cooking utensils, thus creating a deficit in the procurement of food.

4.2. The ambiguity of the roles of stakeholders in the administration of

the NSNP funds within their schools.

Prior to the implementation of the NSNP the Provincial coordinator stated categorically that the School Governing Bodies, principals and educators who coordinated NSNP were given training on their roles concerning the administration of the NSNP. The handling of the administration of NSNP was new for the schools since the ‘shift’ thereof from the DoE.

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The interviews revealed that some of the SGB members, principals and educators were not aware of their designated roles with regards to the administration of the NSNP. Of the six schools three SGB members were aware of their roles on the administration of the NSNP, whilst the other three were uncertain. On the other hand four of the six educators were aware of their responsibilities whilst two disregarded The National Guidelines of the NSNP which emphasized proper procurement process, which relates to Chapter 5 of the PFMA (The National Guidelines of the NSNP, 1994: 14-27).

Regarding the principal’s role of being an accounting officer and quoted by Kroon (1996: 267) that the manager must be responsible for the proper performance of his subordinates and see to it that the instructions are carried out to the latter. Also as stated in (Source: The Batho Pele Handbook: A Service Delivery Improvement Guide, 2003) that managers must promote efficient, economic and effective use of resources to be used for the purpose they were budgeted for; any unauthorized or irregular expenditure is regarded as a financial misconduct (PFMA 1999, section44 and 81). Only two of the six principals managed NSNP effectively, whilst four mismanaged it.

The results of the above findings were evident in the responses of the Provincial NSNP coordinator when he evidently stated his frustrations with regards to the reporting tools and the handling of the school’s account for all the stake holders. He elaborated by stating that when schools submitted their NSNP reports, he uses a checklist where he evidently discovered that most schools had a gap on reporting effectively on NSNP. Some schools used the cheque book to cash money using the educator’s names and failed to account for the deficit in change money.

4.3. The discrepancies within the schools regarding the use of the

menu system.

The aim of the NSNP was to provide meals to mostly needy learners, who came from poor backgrounds. As stated by Del Ross (1999:6) that the nutritional and health loci are powerful influences on a child’s learning performance in school. He further elaborated that children who lacked certain nutrients in their diet (particularly iron and iodine) or who suffer from protein-energy malnutrition, hunger, parasitic infections or other diseases, do not have the same potential for learning as the healthy and well-nourished children do.

The meals are intended to enhance learning and also to provide physical health. The Department of Education in collaboration with the private companies developed and printed a recipe book titled “MNANDI 4 SURE” menu which has been distributed to schools. The recipe book will assist food handlers to prepare a variety of meals that are delicious and nutritious.

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The interviews revealed that out of the six schools only one school stuck to the prescribed NSNP menu and the other five schools disregarded the menu. The five schools provided meat on Wednesday and Fridays, on Mondays it is chicken livers on Thursday they serve Amasi and on Tuesday’s samp and beans.

The results have shown that the one school that stuck to the prescribed menu had no problem with the shortage of food due to the late depositing of funds by the Department of Education, instead their food remained and they did the top- up when necessary. Whilst the other five schools suffered due to the late depositing of NSNP funds since they procured expensive meat. They enjoyed luxurious meals but for a shorter period of time consequently leading to hunger for the learners and learner absenteeism due to their negligence and noncompliance with the NSNP menu.

CHAPTER FIVE

5. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The main focus of this study was to investigate the effectiveness and the efficiency in the administration of the NSNP at six schools within the King William’s Town District of the Eastern Cape Department of Education after the department had ‘shifted’ the day to day administration of NSNP to section 20 and 21 schools respectively. This investigation had therefore identified that the schools had failed to administer the NSNP effectively and efficiently.

The aim of the study was to identify the problematic areas that negatively influenced the best possible implementation of the NSNP. Furthermore to stimulate constructive suggestions and recommendations to the Department of Education in the Eastern Cape in terms of redressing

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the imbalances and the gaps in the proper implementation of the NSNP as stipulated in its guidelines.

This section therefore will summarize the major findings, suggest specific steps to improve on the implementation of the NSNP indicate improvements for future research and conclude with some final thoughts.

5.1. The inconsistencies in the allocation of funds by the Department of

Education

The Norms and Standards for School Funding of 1999, was implemented by the State in order to redress the imbalances of the past with reference to funding public schools, exempting parents who cannot pay school fees and State subsidies to independent schools. The NSNP is a conditional grant to Provincial Departments of Education from the National Department of Education through the National Treasury which is allocated to assist poorest schools and to ensure that learners from the poorest background remain at school and they should receive a balanced meal (Province of the Eastern Cape Department of Education 2006:8).

The school principals had indicated that the Department of Education failed to deposit the NSNP funds timeously so as to allow schools to do their procurement and the payment of food handlers on time. The researcher recommends that the Department of Education should take back the responsibility of managing the NSNP funds and procuring the food for the schools as the schools are experiencing problems in the administration of the NSNP funds. Secondly the Department should be consistent in the allocation of NSNP funds, for an example there should be stipulated time frames on depositing the funds into the schools accounts. The Department of Education should create a different code for the NSNP funds when depositing in the schools account or alternatively deposit in a separate account so as to curb the maladministration of the NSNP funds for other needs of the schools. Furthermore the schools should keep accurate records on the funds of the NSNP (Invoices showing quantities of food purchased and delivered, the number of learners fed and the payment of food handlers) in order to curb the misappropriation of funds. The submission of proper monthly report to the circuit, district and subsequently to the provincial coordinator should be a prerequisite to receive the NSNP funds for the schools, failing which schools should not be allocated funds. The quintiles in which the schools are placed are often inappropriate. For example senior secondary school in Bisho is designated as quintile 5 whereas it is serving communities from the village of Izinyoka and should be placed in quintile 1 as the Izinyoka community is poorer but they are closer to the Balasi Valley where middle class people live. On the other hand the Conditional Grant is insufficient to meet the nutritional needs of the growing number of vulnerable learners and therefore should be increased to at least two hundred rands per learner as it was presently one-hundred and thirty rands.

The effectiveness in the administration of the national school nutrition programme in King Williams Town in the Eastern Cape