By Mohamed Lamin Banya
The Congo Market Descendants Progressive Union has provided 50 sets of three seater benches and tables to the Fataraman Municipal School in Freetown.
Vice Chairman of the Union, Martin Jabbie said the furniture will ease challenges pupils face with sitting accommodation which has forced most of the pupils to sit on the floor during class sessions.
He said the support is in line with President Julius Maada Bio’s led government’s free and quality education, noting that seeing children sitting on the floor to take classes prompted the gesture.
Jabbie went on to say the furniture is for the kids to have a better learning environment so that they can have better education and leave a good footprint for the next generation.
The school according to Mr. Jabbie is not the only school that will be benefitting from the gesture but that other schools and institutions within the Congo Market community will also benefit.
The support is one amongst the many developmental initiatives the Union has been undertaking since its establishment.
Deputy Director of Education Western Urban in the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Francess Kamara said access and adequate furniture can be the only thing to upkeep pupils in schools.
“The building was constructed for us but with no furniture, we were not happy about this. We have no option but to accept the situation as it was despite our children were in serious constraints on sitting accommodation” she said.
Principal of the Fataraman Municipal School, Moses Moigula said lack of furniture in the school is causing a sharp reduction in the number of pupils enrolling per academic year, noting that parents are withdrawing their children after being admitted because the school lacks furniture.
He went on to say the furniture provided will greatly impact the learning environment in the community.
The Union is made up of indigenes of the community both in the diaspora and at home. The benches and tables provided are in line with the donors desire to identify community needs, address them and engage targeted groups as value-adding services to the society.
The formation of the Union has brought about new era in the development of the school.
