Are We Able to Lift the Downtrodden? The MDGs and Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Ghana

Abstract

This paper examines how government’s interventions on the Millennium Development Goal 2 such the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) helps in addressing the educational needs of Orphaned and Vulnerable Children (OVC) in children’s Homes in Ghana. These issues are examined broadly within the context of the Social Justice Theory which emphasises the relevance of recognising marginalised groups in the distribution of state resources. The paper adopts qualitative research approaches in collecting data from two Children’s Homes in the Tema Municipality in order to investigate their feeding arrangements and its influence on the inmates’ educational enrolment. Findings show that although there have been progressive reports on the GSFP, one of its major set-backs is its exemption of OVC in Children’s Homes, thus creating educational challenges for OVC. There is therefore the need to expand the GSFP further to include OVC.