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September is a season of fresh starts, and in the UK it means children are heading back to school. But in South Sudan where AID works, far too many children never get this chance. Because of conflict, poverty and natural disasters, 51% of all primary aged children are out of school and only 1 in 10 complete primary school- one of the lowest rates in the world. Yet we believe that education- especially Christian education- is a source of hope. Christian schools help children learn essential skills to escape poverty, heal from conflict and understand the gospel for themselves. However, at one Christian school in Yei, South Sudan, dozens of children may not be able to go back to school – because there are not enough classrooms for them to learn. Children at Immanuel Primary School are in danger of dropping out before the new school year starts in January – unless 3 new classrooms are built for primary 5-8. |
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Meet Stephen, in primary 4. Before coming to Immanuel School, Stephen went to a government school, where he struggled to learn in a large class and went to bed hungry because there were no school meals. Sadly, Stephen’s experience is common in government schools, where classes of 99 children for every 1 teacher go without books, desks, and sometimes even a teacher due to unpaid salaries. |
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Coming to Immanuel last year completely transformed Stephen’s learning. Now head boy, he is flourishing thanks to the dedicated Christian teachers, healthy breakfasts and class ratios of 49 students to 1 teacher. Stephen’s story of transformation is just one of many at Immanuel– one of the only quality schools in Yei accessible to low-income families. Their affordable school fees, feeding programme and well-trained teachers are game-changing for parents in Yei, most of whom live below the UN poverty line of $3 a day. In the long term, Immanuel aims to help their 526 children learn skills to lift themselves out of poverty and encounter the life-changing love of Jesus. Their simple motto is “Education is the foundation for a bright future”. “Immanuel School is a faith based school… with a vision to be a welcoming, transformed community empowered with quality education.”- Ferida Tenge Manoa, Headmistress of Immanuel School But Immanuel School needs new classrooms for Stephen and his classmates to move up to primary 5 in January. This is because Immanuel was built gradually, starting as a mud-walled building in 2009 to serve South Sudanese refugees returning home after civil war. Today, it only has space for up to primary 4. Without more classrooms, when Primary 5 begins in January, dozens of children- including Stephen – will have nowhere to go. “We are hoping that we will complete this block by next year January so that primary 5 will be open… Both of us will join hands to make this school complete.”- Ferida Tenge Manoa, Headmistress Over the next fortnight, could you help us raise £10,000 for our Back to School campaign to support Christian Education in East Africa? This money would help Immanuel School finish building 3 new classrooms in time for January. This is the first time AID has raised money for a school building- it’s new for us! But we firmly believe this kind of one-off project will have a huge impact on hundreds of children for years to come – and you can help. Immanuel have already scraped together enough funds to start construction, but have a long way to go to make the classrooms safe and usable. Every donation counts- just £121 will pay for a window and £136 for a door. But most importantly, every pound helps children like Stephen go back to school, build a future away from poverty and grow in knowledge of Jesus’ love. And the first £5000 will be match-funded- if you give today, your donation will be doubled. Can you donate today to build a bright future for children at Immanuel School? |
