A glimpse of three classrooms at the new school in Ngourtou Koumboua, Chad 2021. | © F. RABEZANDRIANTSOA BAKOLY/HI
October 25, 2021 marked the first day of school and the opening of a new elementary school in Ngourtou Koumboua in the Lake province[1] of Chad. Since 2018, the village has served as a host site for more than 7,000 internally displaced persons who fled violence of armed groups affecting the region since 2014. Until now, the village has had no school.
Through a project aimed at protecting and educating children in the Lake Region[2], HI has built 6 classrooms to finalize the construction of this school, two years in the making. Built according to the "Temporary learning spaces" model, which favors the use of local materials and metal structures, the new classrooms are adapted for emergency contexts and will be able to accommodate more than 300 students for the 2021-2022 school year.
For parents, who not been able send their children to school until now, the opening of this school is particularly important. One father present at the opening ceremony testified, "We are very happy this morning! For us and our children who have waited so long in Ngourtou Koumboua, the school year can finally begin. I am so glad to see this school opening!”
The official opening ceremony was held in the presence of the departmental inspector of the Provincial Delegation of National Education and Civic Promotion of the Lake, the residential chief, the representative of the canton chief of Nguelea and the parents of the students.
161 newly enrolled children received school supply kits composed of 1 bag, 4 notebooks, 1 slate, 2 pencils, 2 pens, 1 box of colored pencils and 1 ruler each.
This project is part of HI’s ongoing initiative to improve access to school and quality of schooling, in the Fouli and Kaya departments of Chad affected by the humanitarian crisis, which will benefit more than 9,000 children.
Humanity & Inclusion (HI) has been present in Chad since the 1990s in the sectors of inclusive and emergency education, mine action, victim assistance, peace building, physical rehabilitation and economic integration of people with disabilities and vulnerabilities. It currently runs projects in N'Djamena as well as in the Lake, Logone Occidental and Logone Oriental provinces as well as the Borkou, Ennedi and Tibesti (BET) regions.
The European Union and its member states are the primary financers of humanitarian aid. Through the Directorate General for Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), the European Union assists millions of victims of conflict and disaster every year. With its headquarters in Brussels and an international network of field offices, it provides assistance to the most vulnerable people on the basis of humanitarian needs.
