THE ROGBONKO VILLAGE SCHOOL TRUST

Roll Back Malaria!

According to the World Health Organisation’s Roll Back Malaria programme, malaria kills more than one million people – most of them children in sub-Saharan Africa – every year. Sleeping under mosquito nets at night has been shown to be the most effective, as well as the cheapest way to prevent malaria.

Pupils at Brandeston Hall School in Suffolk, who last year raised money for a new school building, this year employed a host of innovative and entertaining ideas in a year round endeavour to raise money to provide every child at Rogbonko Village School with a mosquito net. A Charity Antiques Valuation Evening set the ball rolling with the help of Bonham’s Auctioneers. Then, during the October half term, children were given a £1 coin and asked to make from it as much money as they could. £1400 was raised by making jam, baking cakes, polishing shoes, washing cars and even cleaning golf clubs. Summertime and the Year Eight Fete, this year featuring a Terminator assault course and a human fruit machine among the stalls and events. By the end of the summer term a staggering £5000 had been raised. And as a direct result in September each child at Rogbonko received a king size mosquito net – big enough for their brothers and sisters to share. Their thanks and ours go to everyone at Brandeston for this outstanding achievement.

UNESCO Youth Ambassador Don McBurney, a long term supporter of Rogbonko Village School, has used his website to give people in Britain the opportunity to purchase an animal as a gift for the school. Donors were swift and generous. Ten ducks, two sheep and two goats will soon be on their way to the village. The animals will be cared for by pupils and their produce used to help supplement the children’s diets.

During the summer holidays trainers from Makeni Teacher Training College visited the village and conducted a two week training programme for our four school teachers to help them develop skills appropriate to adult education. The evening classes, which began in March, are attended by 60 people and going strong.

Old Ways, New Goals

All thirteen entrants from Rogbonko Village School to the National Primary School Exams have passed. Collectively, pupils from Rogbonko passed with the highest marks in the district. All have won places at a secondary school in nearby Magburaka. However few among the villagers in Rogbonko can afford the fees, uniforms and books required for each child. So the village elders and school committee have turned to a traditional self-help system of support called ‘osusu.’ Often used by farmers to insure against the loss of their crop,‘osusu’ is to be used to guarantee the future education of Rogbonko’s children. Each parent with a child at Rogbonko Village School will contribute Le15,000 (£3) into a central purse. Any child who wins a place at secondary school will be entitled to have their fees paid from the collective funds. With 200 children at the school, mostly in the youngest class, the fund should have several years to build.

Rogbonko Village School Trust, c/o 161 Waller Road, London SE14 5LX.

rogbonkotrust@aol.com