A message to Abana committee before their meeting

Message to Abana Committee

Sunday 2:30 PM... We should all have a siesta. But on Friday afternoon, I called a few stakeholders of Rugerero Primary to ask if they could attend a meeting at the school at 2:30... just before the Abana Committee gets together in Sydney. They all said ‘Yes, I’ll be there and they all came! Very impressive, very encouraging indeed! I wanted to start creating a bridge between the two groups, to start establishing a solid communication channel.
I spoke very briefly at the start of the meeting and then promised that I would stand aside, insisting that they continue the discussion in Kinyarwanda, their mother tongue. I said: ‘Abana Australia wants to keep helping you develop your school. You all are very important people, you are here to stay, this is ‘your ‘ school, your community, you know what you need, you know what your main obstacles are. Abana Australia has to hear from YOU. How could you improve the quality of the education provided to the local children? If you were given 10 million RWF (20 000 A$), how would you wisely invest this amount of money. How could Rugerero become a pilot school for the whole region, how could we set an example of what can be achieved with limited funds? They understood very well what I was asking.
As I am writing this, they are talking away. I don’t understand the words, but I can feel the intensity and the energy of what they are saying. Here is the outcome, this is THEIR report:
We want that Rugerero become a pilot school. To achieve this we prioritise the following:
- Teacher training
- Solar panels + a few computers + audio-visual equipment
- Mini laboratories for sciences (Chemistry, physics biology
- Resource centre for teachers (with teaching aids and books)
- Assistance to those who have been identified as ‘vulnerable’ children (orphans from the genocide, very poor children) – provide them with school uniforms, and basic school material
- Scholarship, financial support to the children who display good intelligence and good work

Are they asking for too much? Are they being unrealistic? I will let you decide. I just thought you needed to hear from them. ‘THEM’ Jeannette, the headmistress, Cesumi Damian an active member of a NGO involved in education and training, Frederic, a very dedicated and articulate teacher, Jacinthe – my neighbour who is very respected in the local community and who has a very clear idea of what we are trying to achieve, Denis – a representative from the local authorities (he is in charge of educational and social matters, he represents the government in the area).