Food Security Programme

The Food Security Division of the Presidential Secretariat has instructed to create a Food Bank/Food Exchange Societies in order to overcome lack of quality food that has caused malnutrition in the country. The Presidential Secretariat through the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs loos asked all worshiping places to be used for Food Rank/Food Exchange Societies to share the excess food in households with needy food insecure families. Accordingly, the excess food or anyone who wishes to donate food to the families that suffer from lack of proper food, to donate such food item free of charge through worshiping places. We therefore, kindly request all the Mosque administration to ensure and arrange for a work Programme to collect excess food from the Jamath members of the area that are coming under the Mosque administration and to distribute them to needy people. The following steps should be taken in this regard.

• Chief incumbent of the religious institutions in each areas take the leadership of the program.
• Forming 1,13/FE societies, including A/L and Dhamma School students.
• Appoint a manager to run societies
• Preparing operational modalities, book keeping, food receiving, food storage and accounting systems for the F8/FEs with the help of a management expert.
• Preparing the auditing and internal control system to assure the transparency.
• Allocating a physical space- a room or build a small separate room for the FB/Fes at the selected religious institution in the area.
• Organizing a meeting with residents in the area to create awareness on FB/FEs operational system.
• Inviting donors/NG0s/business community/well- wishers in the area for donations.
• Identifying severe food insecure needy families and children with acute malnutrition and registrar them as regular beneficiaries and issue membership.
• Purchasing basic items such as food storage baskets, tables, wrapping papers, shopping bags, record etc.
• Creating regular publicity campaigns on the FB/ FE project at each village level.
• Inauguration of FB/FE societies.
• Prepare annual performance reports and share with donors, well-wishers and beneficiaries.

I shall be thankful the Board of Trustees and persons in Charge of Mosque, Thakkiyas and Zaviyas to oversee this programme and arrange for distribution of food items to the needy families in the area.

A copy of the guidelines issued by the Food Security Division of the Presidential Secretariat is also enclosed herewith.

Ibrahim Ansar

Director

Department of Muslim Religious and Cultural Affairs