Mehoni School Deutsch
Public, government-run schools in Ethiopia are chronically short of money with which to finance their maintenance costs. This means that after just a few years, school buildings show serious weather damage and general wear and tear. With time, facilities break down and can no longer be optimally used.
But this could change. Most rural schools have generous tracts of land which they could use as market gardens to raise money for maintenance procedures. With this in mind, in 2015 Ethiopian Enterprises began an ambitious project to rebuild a large rural school with the aim of creating a model self-sustaining school. With the help of our donors, as well as that of the school community and local government, we are well on the way.
Our project school, Lemlem Baro Elementary School in Mehoni, northern Ethiopia, is attended by over 1400 students. Until recently, all classes were held in improvised huts made of mud and branches, and hygiene at the school was in a critical state due to a total lack of water. But now this is changing. The new school has been built around a comprehensive rainwater-collection system. The water is used for nurturing fruit and vegetables in the schools’ gardens, and for cleaning the school.
Not only that, but over the past twelve months we have rolled out core components of the program to five other schools in order to heighten awareness of the potential of rural schools to provide for their own maintenance. This exciting project has already created a vastly improved learning environment at Lemlem Baro School. But it is far from over. Renovation of remaining old buildings, the construction of new toilet blocks and playing areas are just some of the steps which lie ahead.
Your support will ensure that we can complete these further stages of the school’s development and provide other rural public schools with a self-supporting model on which to build their futures.