Near East Foundation - Sudan Community School Reconstructed & Upgraded

In a desperately poor area on the outskirts of Khartoum inhabited by Sudanese forced to leave their homes in the south and west of the country, the "Tagwa Centre" has been trudging on. In the single-story school with five small classrooms separated by reed mats, 250 students sit on the bare ground to learn, with no roof overhead to shield them from the sun's burning rays in the hot season and cold in winter, dusty winds, nor the noise outside.

That's about to change any day now!

Near East Foundation Regional Director Roger Hardister visited the school in November. First NEF contributed large mats for the children to sit upon, rather than the hot ground Hardister observed. NEF also provided funding for textbooks and supplies for students as well as teaching manuals and a geometry set as an educational tool. Funds from a partner organization were used for drinking water--a stand and three small jug containers. Next came joint financial support for a much-needed roof and supporting walls.

A COMMUNITY SCHOOL

From its beginnings six years ago, the Tagwa Centre school has been the brainchild of Mohamed El-Tayeb and a community effort working with the local Popular Committee. Mr. El-Tayeb now administers a school--albeit modest--on land he donated, built by volunteers using local materials for its mud-brick construction. There are no windows or doors, rather a small path through a half-shattered mud wall which the children use as an exit. Unfortunately the little school yard is used as a short cut by distracting, noisy pedestrians.

Yet as Mohamed Ali, NEF-Sudan staff, says it is important to note: "The school was founded by and for local people. It is through their efforts and devotion that the project began, and through their persistence and courage overcoming all obstacles and facing all challenges, that the dream became a reality."

That participation continued with the school roof. Once funding was received, Ali met with the School Administrator El-Tayeb and the Popular Committee to discuss the most suitable roof. Finally an agreement was reached that NEF local staff and Mr. El-Tayeb would take charge of the project, to be built by the same local contractor constructing a obstetric delivery room at the nearby NEF health clinic. For its part, the community would contribute some of the mud bricks needed as framework for the roofing as well as the necessary water supply--a service that has to be purchased.

The project began in December and was reportedly "progressing smoothly" and expected to conclude in early February. All six classrooms are being roofed with iron pipes and wood sticks covered with reed matting; in turn overlaid with plastic sheeting as rain protection; and yet another layer of cloth sacks to ventilate the plastic from the sun. So the school's 250 students soon will be protected from heat, wind, and dust. Further, classroom walls will be extended to the roof. And each classroom will have a door and window--providing now absent ventilation, and a blackboard as well.

In short, the community continues its involvement in their school, a very meaningful activity for them, providing a sense of ownership, dignity, and pride in what they have achieved so far. All of which will help motivate their continuing support and secure the sustainability of the school and possibilities for local educational development in the future.

Right now the Tagwa Centre school offers access and stability of educational opportunity in this very deprived area as well as a better alternative than the far-distant, expensive, and overcrowded public school. It is also a magnet attracting orphan children off the streets--since orphans comprise 40 percent of enrollment--and away from a probable doomed future.

MORE TO DO

Still needed are cement-and-brick floors replacing the current dusty ground; provision of proper seating; and fencing the expanded schoolyard to safeguard students and limit the distractions of pedestrian traffic.

This same area of New Dar El-Salaam El-Tawidaat also benefits from NEF's micro-credit program, health clinic, and food distribution during holidays, made possible with financial assistance from our many partners.