Help Girgir Primary School

“The learner being able to eat at school will not only help him to be retained in the school, but also relieve the burden to the parent of having to feed them. Once they can have enough food in school, even if the mother doesn't get enough food for supper, maybe that food can sustain that child up to the following day. Food is what keeps them in school. If there is no food, there is no learning.”

This was the reply of Girgir Primary School Headmaster Josiah Muriithi when asked on the importance of food in sustaining 900 students every day in his school. The reality he describes is one lived daily by these children in great need. For them, school is often their only safe haven. Founded in 1963 in a very dry and remote area north of the equator in Kenya (Archer’s Post, Samburu), Girgir Primary has been extremely resilient until now, which does not mean that they aren’t confronted to many difficulties on a daily basis.

What are some of the challenges?

• Severe food shortages
• Urgent renovations required
• Lack of feminine hygiene products
• Lack of supplies (notebooks, workbooks, pens, etc.)
• Special education needs

Why is the school struggling?

• Very arid land
• Lack of government support
• Weak staff/student ratio (1 teacher for 40+ students)
• No running water
• Little to no medical attention to students
• Lack of funds for maintenance

How is the school funded?

At Girgir, the school is run through a combination of public funding and NGO grants. Parents of the community come from humble backgrounds and cannot contribute to their children’s educational needs. Thus, as the primary school’s budget is only partially (25%) supported by the kenyan government, the NGO Maisha Marefu Onlus does it’s best to provide as much funding as possible to respond to their basic needs. Still, whilst providing the bulk of the school’s funding needs, some urgent needs still cannot be sponsored. Headmaster Muriithi said it clearly: “you find that the school's challenges are more than the help the government provides”.

How has private funding through Maisha Marefu Onlus helped the school grow until now?

This “supportive partnership”, as Headmaster Muriithi describes, has already been tremendously beneficial for the school and its students. Over the years, the NGO has equipped Girgir Primary with hundreds of new mattresses, desks, lockers, and notebooks for the boarders and students. They are also currently working on supplying the school with sufficient food (beans, rice, and flour) to make sure the students have access to a basic nutrition on a daily basis. Maisha Marefu Onlus have also financed the much needed renovation and re-painting of both the boys and girls dormitories (renovation of classes are ongoing). Still, yet to date, the biggest project investments have been through efforts to bring running water to the school. Until now, water had to be trucked in on a weekly basis or withdrawn from nearby water sources (eg: the local church’s water reserves). This new water extraction project underway includes drilling a borehole and constructing the appropriate infrastructure to facilitate water pumping. Further investments into water treatment are to follow when the project is finalized and the school finally has access to running water (a first since 1963). It’s a considerable step to self-sufficiency and further projects, mentioned in the interview with the headteacher (see link), that require additional funds are ongoing (eg: renovations of facilities, construction of library, dininng hall, greenhouses etc.)

What is still of major concern?

English professor Tereza Loloo, who has been teaching at Girgir for thirteen years, when asked on the biggest issues the school faces, shared similar concerns to those of the headmaster’s : “sometimes, some of them don't eat, they don't come in the school because of maybe the lack of food. If we were in shortage, they would never attend the lessons.” If the kids, cannot eat and drink properly, do not have the tools to learn, and are in unfavorable environments, they simply cannot learn. Families are not enrolling their children in school as a result of these dire conditions.

That’s why we need YOUR help to assure:

Food supply:

• Acute food shortages to be relieved in priority
• Funding for a more balanced diet
• Funding for self-sustainment of the school
  • Developing greenhouse and vegetable garden
  • Breeding cows and goats

Water supply:

• Water → health → focus → learning
• Improving hygiene
• Drinking water

Renovations:

• Repairing floors → applying tiles (more durable)
• Repainting classrooms
• Repairing fence → fencing all school grounds to avoid intrusions
• Building dining hall/library → kids eat in playground / no reading possibilities
• Repairing roof → eliminating asbestos (exposure increases the risk of several serious health conditions)
• Replacing latrines → with flush toilets
• Acquiring a printer → printing exercices / exams so to not have to import them

How is my donation being utilized?

We have made a price list of essential items that can be purchased using donations.

For example, with 0,12€, you can feed one student for one day.

Food supply:

• 30€ - 20L cooking oil
• 35€ - Firewood for 1 week (cooking)
• 49€ - 90kg maize wheat
• 63€ - 100kg rice
• 90€ - 90kg beans

Other:

• 7€ - 100 pencils or 50 pens or 10 notebooks
• 7€ - 10 sanitary towel box (60 pads)
• 30€ - Mikasa volleyball / football
• 135€ - 16 full uniforms (jersey, shorts, pants)
• 830€ - Printer

• With a 10€ donation, you can feed 81 children for a day;
• With a 20€ donation, you can feed 81 children and buy 100 pads;
• With a 50€ donation, you can feed 81 children, buy 150 pads, and buy a brand new football;
• With a 108€ donation, you can feed all 900 students for a day!

All money donated will go directly to Girgir Primary School to the following account:

• Client account name: Girgir Primary School
• Account Number: 10111301000017
• Beneficiary bank: Consolidated Bank of Kenya Limited
• Swift code: CONKKENA

Any amount is appreciated and will contribute to improving to a great extent the quality of life of these pupils. Let us know in the comments below what you would prefer your donation to be used for! If you have no preferences, we will allocate the funds according to the most urgent needs of the school.

If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us:

• Email: [email protected]
• Phone: +254 710 109 990(Josiah Muriithi: headteacher)
• Address: Girgir Primary School, P.O. Box 82 - 60300, Isiolo, Kenya
• Maisha Marefu Onlus NGO: https://www.maishamarefu.org/en/