First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, accompanied by Oksen Lisovyi (Minister of Education and Science), Viktor Mykyta (Deputy Head of the Office of the President) and Andrii Stashkov (Deputy Minister of Education and Science), visited educational institutions in the Chernihiv region.

In particular, the team visited the culinary hub at the Chernihiv Centre for Vocational and Technical Education, as well as the kitchen unit at Gymnasium No. 13. These premises have recently been renovated and refurbished as part of the Swiss-Ukrainian DECIDE project in partnership with the Chernihiv Regional State Administration and the Chernihiv City Council.

 

Culinary hub

 

This culinary hub was created as part of reforms to vocational education and nutrition. Here, pupils in Years 5–9 can experience various culinary professions first-hand. Excursions are constantly being organised for schoolchildren as part of their career guidance.

 

Culinary hub

 

Chefs from Chernihiv and the Chernihiv region have the opportunity to learn modern techniques for preparing healthy and tasty school meals, as well as improving their qualifications by mastering new recipes. So far, ninety chefs from communities in the region have completed training at the hub.

The total investment by Switzerland in creating a culinary hub and training production specialists within the DECIDE project amounted to over UAH 5.8 million.

Meanwhile, in view of the current conditions, the kitchen unit and cafeteria at Gymnasium No. 13 are referred to as a ‘restaurant’. The kitchen unit was included in the overall renovation of the educational institution. Investment in renovating the kitchen unit and cafeteria amounted to over UAH 10.7 million. The DECIDE project team provided support for the creation and planning of these spaces at every stage.

 

Kitchen unit and cafeteria at Gymnasium No. 13

 

In addition, in collaboration with the School Food Office and Yevhen Klopotenko’s NGO CultFood, she conducted training for vocational school teachers. These teachers are currently retraining school cafeteria workers from communities in the Chernihiv region.

‘Even in times of hardship, our children must receive the best opportunities that the country can provide. One of them is quality guaranteed nutrition that gives them the strength and health to study and to live. This is exactly what the school nutrition reform ensures,’ the First Lady said.

 

At Gymnasium No. 13

 

Interestingly, in previous years, only half of the schoolchildren in this border region were provided with hot lunches. However, according to Viacheslav Chaus, Head of the Regional State Administration, 99 per cent of pupils are expected to receive hot lunches this academic year.

 

Kitchen unit of Gymnasium No. 13

 

‘Of course, behind every percentage point lies a lot of work: modernising outdated school kitchen units and creating culinary hubs to teach chefs new techniques, for example. There is also a state subsidy that covers these expenses and the meals themselves, as well as funds from each community. They allocate these funds at their discretion and according to their means to co-finance lunches and improve them further. Every modern country has a duty to provide children with high-quality, healthy meals. For Ukraine, it is also about resilience and endurance in times of hardship, as well as a sense of care and social cohesion,’ wrote Olena Zelenska on her Facebook page.