Grade 7 Zero Pass Rates among Zimbabwean primary schools are increasingly associated with a range of complex factors, notably food insecurity and suboptimal nutritional status, which remain under-researched determinants. In environments with limited resources, lack of access to nutritionally adequate diets negatively impacts students' cognitive development, focus, and school engagement, thereby reducing their academic performance in essential subjects, such as literacy and numeracy. This study explores the potential of nutrition-sensitive interventions to address educational underachievement and interrupt the ongoing cycle of poor examination results. Persistent zero pass rates among Grade 7 learners in Zimbabwean primary schools constitute a critical impediment to educational attainment, reflecting a complex interplay of socio-economic deprivation, institutional constraints, and individual learner factors. This study examines the determinants of these dismal academic outcomes, emphasizing the role of nutritional deficits and household food insecurity in undermining cognitive function, attention, and classroom engagement. Drawing on empirical evidence from Zimbabwe and broader Sub-Saharan Africa, the analysis demonstrates that children experiencing chronic undernutrition, inadequate dietary diversity, and limited access to learning resources exhibit significantly lower literacy, numeracy, and examination performance. Nutrition-sensitive interventions, particularly school feeding programmes (SFPs), emerge as pivotal mechanisms to ameliorate these deficits. Rigorous evaluations from Ghana, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Malawi reveal that SFPs enhance attendance, reduce absenteeism, improve cognitive function, and elevate academic achievement, especially when integrated with complementary educational strategies such as remedial teaching and teacher capacity development. The findings underscore the necessity of adopting multi-dimensional, evidence-based academic recovery interventions that synergistically address nutritional, pedagogical, and socio-economic determinants of learning. By elucidating the nexus between child nutrition and academic performance, this study provides critical insights for policymakers, educators, and development practitioners aiming to eradicate zero pass rates and promote equitable educational outcomes in Zimbabwe.