Ambohitrandraina Primary School
inauguration: 9 September, 2024 🗓️
Thanks to Adsum Foundation for financing this project ❤️
📍Location: The village of Ambohitrandraina,
Rural commune of Ambohimandry,
District of Arivonimamo,
Itasy Region.
💡Objectives:
-
To improve access to primary education and increase capacity
-
To improve teaching/studying conditions
-
To contribute to the alleviation of poverty
-
To provide a healthier working/studying environment; to motivate the teachers, and give the pupils a greater sense of wellbeing
Built by Ghyslain RAKOTOBE's team.
Cost
1/ Four Classroom buildings: Ariary 142,056,587 (£ 28,411)
2/Classroom furniture: 45 locally made school benches, 3 teachers’ desks and chairs ;bookshelves and cupboards; Pre-school furniture; 40 locally made small chairs; 10 small tables and 1 teachers’ desk and chair ; bookshelf and cupboard and educational toys : Ariary 17,158,000 (£3,432)
3/ Latrines: Three compartments with boys’urinals: Ariary 8,965,975 (£ 1,793)
TOTAL GRANT: Ariary 168,180,562 (£ 33,636)
BRIEF PROJECT OUTLINE:
Rationale:
Ambohitrandraina Primary School was built by the villagers in 2007-2008. It is a simple structure made from unfired mud bricks, with an earth floor and thatched roof. It consists of four classrooms, each with a mud floor. It was partially destroyed by a cyclone in 2018. The villagers did what they could to carry out repairs, but there was a limit to what they could achieve due to extreme poverty. Only three of the four original classrooms are now useable.
Each of the classrooms has only seven school benches – all in poor condition. The thatched roof is rotten. When it rains water pours through onto the children and their exercise books, and the teachers are obliged to suspend lessons and send the children home early.
Despite the poor condition of the existing classrooms the Head Teacher has no choice but to continue using them – so long as they are considered safe. To accommodate all the pupils and continue to give lessons only in the morning (which is the norm in rural areas) the school uses two small rooms as classrooms in one of the teacher’s houses.
The last Certificate of Primary Education exam results in 2020 were a big improvement on the previous year, despite the poor conditions at the school- where there is a shortage of teaching materials as well as classroom furniture. Conditions at the school for the children and their teachers are unacceptable, and fail by far to meet acceptable standards of hygiene and health.
It is estimated that more than 30 pre-school children will reach school age in the near future in this and the neighbouring communities in Ambohibary; Anafovato; Andranomiady and Andafiavaratra. The nearest school the children could attend is located 5km away. But apart from the distance, access is difficult for children from Ambohitrandraina because it involves crossing a (seasonally) fast flowing river..
The school has no access to water, and the latrine consists of only 2 compartments.
The Ministry of Education currently meets the cost of one civil servant teacher, who is also the Head Teacher. The other four, who are recruited locally, are paid partly in cash and in kind (cassava and sacks of rice) by members of the Association of Parents whose children attend the school. They are also receive a small subsidy from the government. The local representative of the Ministry of Education has undertaken to appoint more teachers once new classrooms are built.