Primary school in Mankweng takes top prize in 2018 National EduPlant Competition
Moriting Primary School in Mankweng has been awarded the best mentoring school award in the 2018 National EduPlant Competition.
POLOKWANE – A team of teachers and three learners from Moriting Primary were among the 66 finalist schools from across the country who came together in Konka, Magaliesberg, to compete in the biennial finals where over R430 000 worth of prizes were handed out.
The mentoring category in the competition is the highest level in the EduPlant competition and a phenomenal achievement for the school.
EduPlant, the country’s leading food gardening programme initiated and managed by Food & Trees for Africa (FTFA) has been funded by the Woolworths Trust over the past 14 years.
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“Congratulations to Moriting Primary. We are very proud of the 2018 EduPlant winners and celebrate all the finalist schools. These schools represented the brightest lights out of 326 schools from all provinces who made substantial achievements in increasing their community’s access to nutritious food,” says Zinzi Mgolodela, Woolworths Director of Corporate Affairs.
“World Food Day, was celebrated on 16 October, it is wonderful to see South African school communities taking action towards #zerohunger in South Africa. Despite the limited resources in their communities, it is inspiring to see that these schools aren’t holding back when it comes to improving food security by growing their own food,” she added. The 2018 World Food Day theme was Our actions are our future, and the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations promotes a #zerohunger world by 2030. A total of 14 million people are at risk of hunger every day in South Africa so local food gardening initiatives such as EduPlant play an important role in increasing vulnerable people’s access to sustainably produced, nutritious foods.
“Over the past 24 years, EduPlant has gone from strength to strength as a champion of sustainable farming through school-based and cluster workshops,” says Robyn Hills, FTFA Programme Manager.
“Alongside our long-term partner, the Woolworths Trust, awareness and knowledge of nutrition and eco-friendly permaculture farming is built in communities where hunger is an issue for millions of South Africans. As we have seen at the 2018 EduPlant Finals, these schools’ food gardens supplement feeding schemes while educating learners about climate change, community resilience, healthy environments and natural vegetable production. EduPlant schools are taking effective action for a #zerohunger future,” concluded Hills. The Woolworths team say that the EduPlant Finals serve as inspiration and contribute to achieving a #zerohunger means working together to ensure that everyone, everywhere can access safe, nutritious food they need for an active, healthy life: “We commend the EduPlant programme as it is a great example of schools and communities taking action to improve food security by encouraging sustainable food growing, uplift education in schools and support the movement towards a #zerohunger South Africa,” said Mgolodela.
