A primary school for the Benna tribe
Inaugurated in the fall of 2020, this elementary school was designed to help the community become self-sufficient in the education of its children. When the project was set up, a pre-existing wooden structure was already in the village. However, security and space problems inherent to the building prevented equitable access to all children. Only a small portion of the children had access to it, which increased inequalities within the tribe and between girls and boys in terms of opportunities.
Today, all children have access. In addition, the school has recently been integrated into the World Food Program's education system to provide daily food service.
February 2023
Project follow-up
The school has been integrated into the World Food Program, allowing daily access to food for the students. This change has greatly increased the number of students coming to the school, which now stands at about 80. For Equity has also funded the purchase of new blackboards to allow for better quality teaching.
November 2020
Inauguration
Simon McDonald, our president, and Alain Toueg, a founding member of the association, went to the site for the inauguration of the school.
They were welcomed by the tribe who organized a big party to celebrate the end of this project and to thank For Equity for the help given. The children were very grateful and are looking forward to attending the new school!
September 2020
School almost finished
The school is about to be finished! The structure is complete, and all that remains is to furnish the interior of the classrooms. The still gray walls will be painted by the students, to give it a more cheerful look.
Despite the current health situation, it has been decided that two members of For Equity will go to the site in November to attend the inauguration.
July 2020
Resumption of work
After many months of stoppage due to the Covid-19 pandemic, work has finally resumed, with here the construction of the wooden frame of the school roof, which is beginning to take shape.
The work should be finished within two months, and some members of the association will travel during November to attend the inauguration. Normally, students will be able to start studying there at the beginning of 2021.
March 2020
Work in pause as a result of Covid-19
Fundraising and work is on hold due to the current pandemic environment. The pandemic has also affected Ethiopia and measures are being taken to protect the population. With everything running at a standstill here in Switzerland, fundraising is also on hold and will resume as soon as the situation allows.
February 2020
Start of the work
After several months of fundraising, the work begins, with first of all the construction of the foundations of the school. The most complicated part of this project is the transportation of the materials to this very inaccessible region of Southern Ethiopia. Most of the material is brought by donkey.
Nevertheless, our coordinator on the spot informed us that the good mood reigned on the building site, and that the workers were very happy to participate in this beautiful project.
October 2019
Laying of the foundation stone
After meeting with local authorities and members of the Benna tribe to agree on the details of the project, the first stone of the school was laid.
For Equity is committed to financing the building, and the authorities are committed to providing the school materials once the school is built. The next few months will be dedicated to fundraising in order to finance this project, with the objective of starting the construction in early 2020.
October 2019
Development of the project
The structure of the future school was designed by our architectural engineer on site and is based on an existing model. Composed of 4 classrooms, it will be able to accommodate about 100 students.
