The Federal Government has approved consumption of sorghum and soybean as diet for junior schools, according to the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mrs. Ibukun Odusote.

Odusote who spoke at a 2-day workshop in Ilorin, Kwara State, said the move was to achieve Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 4 and 5.

She added that it was targeted at reducing child mortality through improved nutrition status of children and improving maternal health before 2015.

Odusote said: ‘’To meet the MDG 4 and 5, the ministry has approved fortified Sorghum and Soybean as part of approved diet for School feeding."

In a statement made available to The Nation yesterday in Abuja, the workshop was designed to demonstrate how to prepare the fortified sorghum and soybean based food into novel foods.

It reads in part: " It is to be used in School feeding programme as well as basic training in hygiene and sanitation."

Mrs. Odusote who was represented by a Director from the National Centre for Agriculture Mechanization (NCAM), Mr Muyideen Kasali, added that one in five children in the country dies before his fifth birthday due to factors related to malnutrition which makes them more vulnerable to killer diseases.

She described women as major players of the initiative and advised them to ensure compliance for proper growth of their children at early stages.

The workshop was planned to train the trainers of this nutrition programme. Participants were drawn from the 16 Local government of Kwara State.

She commended Kano, Gombe, Kaduna and Bauchi States which have already keyed into the programme.

However, she called on Kwara State among others to buy into the programme and adopt the feeding programme which is already ongoing in Osun, Imo and Ekiti States.