Poor infrastructure at Ludwe Ngamlana Primary School, in Kuyasa, will now be a thing of the past, thanks to Sanlam and Sulabh International, a non-governmental organisation, who teamed up to revamp the school.
Broken windows, doors and toilets were repaired and the school walls painted. On Tuesday June 27, pupils and dignitaries from various stakeholders gathered at the school to officially unveil the upgraded facilities.
Teachers and parents expressed their sincere appreciation to the donors and urged them to continue extending their helping hands.
Head of the Sanlam Foundation, Francois Adriaan, said they had identified the school as one of many which faced socio-economic and academic challenges.
He said they had started a five-year partnership with 100 schools across the country, with Ludwe Ngamlana being one of them.
He said their plan was to improve sanitation at schools to ensure that conditions were conducive to teaching and learning.
Mr Adriaan said their core aim was to help the school to improve their academic performance in critical subjects such as maths and life science.
But for them to achieve that, they needed to improve the school environment.
He said they would provide additional training for teachers and leadership development for the school’s management.
Mr Adriaan said through the partnership, they also hoped to identify budding business people within the school’s community and empower them with entrepreneurial skills. Speaking of their partnership with the school, he said primary school pupils needed to be moulded and nurtured so that by the time they reached high school, they were well prepared for the senior phase of their schooling.
He told the school that they strongly believe that the social as well as the academic experience was significant to a child’s growth.
“The partnership that we have informed with the school is aimed at bettering the future of the pupils. We want every child in the country to be given a chance in life.
“We have seen that the school runs a feeding scheme and we hope that we can get a company that operates in the food industry to assist the school with their nutrition.
“Sanlam is turning 100 years this year hence we have opted to support 100 schools as part of our celebrations but most importantly to make a meaningful contribution in nation building,” he said.
School principal, Noloyiso Mtimba Dube, said she was pleased by the support her school had received from the two organisations and was particularly impressed that the pupils’ toilets had been upgraded.
Ms Dube said as much as the government was responsible for looking after schools, schools also needed the assistance of corporates.
Director at Sulabh International, Heather Reed, said their role was to assist schools and improve their infrastructure so that pupils could enjoy being at school.
She said better sanitation was important because it prevented children from contracting infectious diseases.
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