A school kitchen is one of the busiest and most demanding places on the compound. It often starts working long before students think about food—fires are lit early, large saucepans are filled with water, and cooks prepare meals for dozens or even hundreds of children. The space quickly becomes intense: heat rises from firewood stoves, smoke fills the air, and heavy pots of posho, beans, or porridge are lifted and stirred with effort and care.
This situation can become extremely dangerous for children, and in humble government aided schools, it is not unusual to see children walking around without shoes.
Picture the scene during meal preparation. Several cooks move quickly around each other, carrying firewood, tending flames, and balancing large, boiling pots. The ground may be wet or slippery from spilled water, and tools like knives, ladles, and metal lids are in constant use.
That is why we continually train schools to place strong rules around keeping students out of the kitchen while cooking is in progress. It’s not meant to be harsh or unfriendly—it’s about safety and responsibility. The cooks need space to work efficiently without worrying about children underfoot, and students need protection from dangers they may not fully recognize.
This is why we introduced the buckets to get food served outside the kitchen building. Food is moved from the saucepans into the buckets or serving containers, which are then carried either outside, to the classrooms or to the dining area, where each plate is served.
